CYPRUS MAIL

Cyprus Mail www.cyprus-mail.com

Saturday, December 22, 2012

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CYPRUS

SPORT

LIFESTYLE

Police warn about burglars, beggars and pickpockets 3

Reinvigorated Arsenal kick-off festive feast

The on the run Russian oligarch who conquered London’s wine industry

Tomorrow in

32

centre

Mixed messages on debt haircut ECB: Cyprus debt

unsustainable FREE with your Germany not ruling Sunday Mail out haircut Culture Christofias: ‘no way’ One man’s obsession IMF stays mum with natural history Putin offers support turns into a museum People

By Stefanos Evripidou

D

A life ranging from formula driving to New Age therapies

Fashion Men: dare you wear fashion’s latest look, the not so butch meggings??

Showbiz Lunch with 007 favourite Roger Moore

Competition Win a night for two at the St Raphael resort

ESPITE GOVERNMENT efforts to quash concerns of a Cyprus debt haircut, yesterday’s mixed messages coming from international players who now hold the fate of the island’s economy in their hands made any predictions on Cyprus’ future as valuable as a Chinese fortune cookie.

Yesterday’s comments on a potential haircut from representatives of the European Central Bank (ECB), International Monetary Fund (IMF), Eurogroup, Germany and Russia would have left most analysts scratching their heads as to what exactly is the troika’s plan for Cyprus.

The confusion over the likelihood of a possible haircut of Cyprus’ debt - which could prove disastrous for the country - revealed the complex web of interests and concerns involved in rescuing the third smallest economy in the EU, with multifaceted variables pulling the involved parties in opposing directions.

President Demetris Christofias yesterday ruled out the possibility of a haircut on the Cyprus debt.

Asked to comment on reports that the IMF is considering a Cyprus debt write-off to make the island’s debt more sustainable post-bailout, Christofias said a haircut would require the consent of all

27 EU member states.

“We will not accept such a thing,” he said in no uncertain terms.

However, reports have been circulating in recent days that the IMF will only agree to contribute to Cyprus’ estimated €17.5 billion bailout if the country’s public debt is deemed sustainable.

Germany, meanwhile, has made its participation in the Cyprus rescue contingent on the IMF’s involvement.

The IMF reportedly fears Cyprus is about to take on such a massive loan - 100 per cent of its GDP - that it will drown under the weight of paying the interest alone.

An ECB representative yesterday made it clear that the country’s debt is not sustainable.

Similar considerations were made when the international lenders had to loan money to Greece, leading to an 80 per cent writedown on Greek bonds. As a result, Cypriot banks - highly exposed to Greek debt - took a massive hit, bumping up their recapitalisation needs and leading Cyprus to request EU/IMF financial support.

At the time, EU partners signalled that the losses incurred by private holders of Greek debt was a one-off that would not be repeated in other members of the eurozone.

According to Finance Minister Vassos Shiarly, the IMF is also putting

TURN TO PAGE 5

An activist of Ukraine’s feminist movement Femen is taken away by Belgian police from in front of the EU Council building in Brussels as she demonstrates against the visit there by Russian President Vladimir Putin who was attending the EU-Russia summit yesterday (AFP)

Saturday, December 22, 2012 CYPRUS MAIL

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Home PICTURE OF THE DAY

Weather Paralimni

Nicosia 18

7

Troodos

18 18

Larnaca

18

18

Paphos

Limassol

TODAY: A mixture of sunshine, cloud and rain. Temperatures will reach 18C inland and along the coasts and 7C over higher ground OUTLOOK: Remaining relatively unsettled until Christmas Day YESTERDAY:

Max Temp Nicosia 15 Larnaca 19 Limassol 17 Paphos 17 Paralimni 17 Prodromos 4

-

Min 8 9 9 12 9 2

Humidity 67% 63% 60% 63% 65% 99%

SUNRISE: 06:52am

SUNSET: 4:39pm

Pollution Low/Low Low/Low Low/Low Low Low Low

Air quality in Cyprus is assessed with the aid of a network of nine advanced monitoring stations.

Data is recorded hourly.

Information provided by the Air Quality Section of the Department of Labour Inspection (DLI)

Worldwide Athens Budapest Bucharest Brussels Cairo Copenhagen Damascus Dublin Frankfurt Geneva Istanbul London

11 -4 -5 9 18 2 12 7 3 7 1 9

Cloudy Mist Snow Cloudy Cloudy Cloudy Cloudy Mist Light Rain Cloudy Mist Cloudy

Madrid Manchester Moscow Oslo Paris Prague Rome Sarajevo Sofia Stockholm Tel Aviv Vienna

13 7 -17 -8 9 -2 9 1 -1 -8 13 0

Cloudy Cloudy Cloudy Cloudy Cloudy Mist Cloudy Cloudy Mist Snow Light Rain Snow

EXCHANGE

€

1.3265

€

0.8165

For a full list of exchange rates, see page 12

CHEMISTS NICOSIA G. Hadjigregoriou, 27A Omirou Ave. Tel: 22673594, 22510112 (H) A. Patatas, 33B Makarios III Ave. Tel: 22754644, 22311598 (H) A. Ttooulas, 22D Kennedy Ave. Tel: 22763805, 22377349(H) E. Fesia, 173C Tseriou Ave. Tel: 22321499, 22325995 (H) N. Spanos, 1D Thessaloniki St, Anglanja. Tel: 22337761, 22444437 (H) LIMASSOL A. Stylianou, Mesa Geitonias.

Tel: 25358477, 25390877 (H)

A. Votsis 19 Dodekanisou Tel: 25341123, 25365316 (H) Chr. Metaxa 5 Christaki Kranou Germasoyia Tel: 25314848, 25322840 (H) LARNACA V. Flouris, St. Lazaros Square.

Tel: 24628331, 24667037 (H) E. Papaioannou, 52. 54 Stratigou Timayia St., Tel: 24633150, 24813135 PAPHOS A. I. Loizidou, 47 Thermopilon St. Tel: 26934184, 26934343 (H) PARALIMNI P. Loizou, 150 Gr. Dighenis Ave. Tel: 23821368, 23823608 (H)

Cyprus Mail Established 1945. Number 21,412 NICOSIA 24 Vass. Voulgaroctonou, P.O. Box 21144, 1502 Nicosia Tel: 22-818585, Fax: 22-676385 email: mail@cyprus-mail.com LIMASSOL 5A Nicolaou, Pentadromos Centre, Thessaloniki St, Tel: 25-761117, Fax: 25-761141 email: cyprusmail@cytanet.com.cy LARNACA Tel: 24-652243, Fax: 24-659982 PAPHOS 62 Apostolou Pavlou Avenue, Office 2, 8046 Paphos, Tel: 26 911383 Fax : 26 221049 email: paphos@cyprus-mail.com

Pierre Frolla, a world champion freediver dressed as Santa Claus swims in the aquarium at the Monaco Oceanographic Museum yesterday (AFP)

QUICK CROSSWORD 2269 Across

Down

1 Able to be seen (7) 7 Parasite (6) 8 Harmful (7) 10 Bowl (5) 11 Breathing in (8) 13 Err (3) 14 Improvise (4) 15 Ill-behaved child (4) 16 Part of one’s foot (3) 18 Driver e.g. (4-4) 20 Dislike (5) 22 Capital of Northern Ireland (7) 23 Cheerful (6) 24 Ginger-haired person (7)

1 Justification (11) 2 Two twelfths (5) 3 Small burner (8) 4 Ascetic Jew (6) 5 Blackleg (4) 6 Persevere (7) 9 Unrestrained (11) 12 Outlined (8) 14 Medium (7) 17 Broker (6) 19 Depart (5) 21 Larva (4)

For cryptic crossword and answers to the previous quick crossword see page 21

ON THIS DAY DECEMBER 22

WHAT THE MAIL SAID

1972

25 years ago Thursday December 22, 1987

The Chilean Air Force finds 14 survivors two months after their plane crashed in the Andes.

Rally party leader Glafcos Clerides and the AKEL-backed presidential candidate George Vassiliou, in statements made during the last 24 hours, have amplified how each one of them intends to bring about much-desired unity in the country.

1989 The Romanian army defects to the cause of anti-communist demonstrators, and the government of Nicolae Ceausescu is overthrown.

1989 Berlin’s most famous landmark, the Brandenburg Gate, opens for the first time in nearly 30 years.

2000 Madonna, the American superstar marries British film maker Guy Ritchie at an exclusive ceremony in a Scottish castle hours after their son is christened.

2003 Guerrillas in Colombia release the Briton Mark Henderson and four Israelis who were kidnapped in September.

35 years ago Saturday December 22, 1977 The Minister of Education, Dr Sofianos, yesterday saw 121 students off to a visit to their enclaved parents and relatives living in the Karpass to spend Christmas. The Minister said he was happy that they have been given the opportunity to visit, but also felt grief because the tragedy of the people of Cyprus, Greek and Turkish alike, still continued.

45 years ago Sunday December 22, 1967 Greek Prime Minister George Papadopoulos announced his government would do its utmost to arrange a referendum by April 21 on the country’s new constitution and at the same time an amnesty embracing hundreds of political offenders. He went on to say that an amnesty would be granted by Christmas to prisoners accused or convicted of political offences both before and after the revolution.

CYPRUS MAIL Saturday, December 22, 2012

3

Home Police uncover illegal abattoir

It’s a time for giving... and a time for taking

LARNACA District Court yesterday ordered three suspects to be held for five days in connection with the operation of an illegal abattoir in the farming district of Aradippou.

The three suspects are the 52-year-old Cypriot owner of the premises, a 59-year-old from Kivisili who acted as the company secretary, and a 50year-old Bulgarian worker.

Police were patrolling the area on Thursday when they saw three people handling illegally slaughtered sheep and goats. Two of the three suspects, believed to be Egyptian workers, fled the scene but the Bulgarian remained behind.

Police found 40 slaughtered sheep and goats and 202 animal skins on the premises, as well as two Veterinary Services stamps for animal tagging.

The Bulgarian, who was arrested on the spot, said the 52-year-old owner ordered him to kill sheep and goats in the abattoir where he had been working for the past two months. The abattoir has allegedly been in operation for three months.

Police are looking for the two Egyptians who fled the scene upon police arrival.

They will continue searching the premises for more slaughtered animals, as well as establish whether the slaughtered animals have been distributed to the market.

Police issue holiday warning about burglars, beggars and pickpockets

By Peter Stevenson CHRISTMAS is generally considered a time for giving, but for others it’s a time of taking, so police are warning the public to keep their belongings close and make sure their homes are safe from burglars.

The men in blue will be enforcing special measures in the run-up to the festive period according to police spokesman Andreas Angelides. “The police force would like to wish the public a safe year end, hoping it will be without any bloodshed, fatal car crashes and reduced crime,” he said.

“The police will make every effort to make sure the holidays are safe for everyone.”

The police will be increasing their patrols in public places and in areas with shops and shopping malls as part of their campaign to prevent burglaries and thefts.

“The public must also make sure their wallets, purses and bags are safe from pick-pockets and thieves,” Angelides added.

The police are advising the public to keep any money or credit cards in the front pockets of their clothing, to not carry large amounts of cash

on them and not keep all of their money, credit cards and passports in their bags. They also suggest that people keep an eye on their bags when they go to shopping malls and other shops, especially when they go into changing rooms.

The police are also attempting to clamp down on begging.

“Begging is against the law,” Angelides said. “Some beggars might even be on welfare, while others might be faking an illness, pretending to be in need to con money from people,” he added. “It is possible that some work in organised groups and minors are being used to trick people into giving them money,” he concluded. Angelides also warned that anyone caught illegally attempting to collect money from drivers at traffic lights will be fined €85.

If a member of the public notices someone begging, especially if those begging at minors, to inform a member of police at the closest police station.

Angelides mentioned that during the festive period, there is a always a bigger number of burglaries and thefts, so those leaving their houses should try to avoid leaving any indi-

cations they are out, and lock their homes well.

He encouraged the public to co-operate with their neighbours if they are leaving and to ensure they have not left their keys on the lock, even on the inside. He also recommended they not leave money or jewellery lying around, and ideally to put all their valuables in a safe and if they have an alarm or surveillance camera to make sure it is working and has not suffered any damage. Shop owners should not leave any money in their registers and should make a note of all of the serial numbers of electronic good in case they are stolen.

“This is a high-risk period for burglaries and thefts so the public is encouraged to take extra measures to make sure their property is safe,” Angelides said.

With regards to car thefts the police are reminding the public that it is their responsibility to lock their vehicles so they cannot be stolen as well informing them of measures that need to be taken to prevent thefts from cars. Bags, briefcases, mobile phones, laptops and any other items of value should not be left in open view inside the car even

Anyone caught asking drivers for money at traffic lights will receive a hefty fine, police say if it is locked. Drivers should also make sure they do not leave the keys in the ignition or on the door even if they are only getting out of the car for a moment and if they are parking the car to make sure it is in a well lit area.

Police are also attempting to clamp down on illegal card games during the holiday pe-

riod and as part of their campaign, members of the force have been visiting card-playing clubs, club-houses and coffee shops where illegal card games take place.

Angelides said there will also be an increase in traffic police presence on the main roads in an attempt to prevent accidents during the holidays.

‘Deputies have given enough in cuts’ says House president

By Stefanos Evripidou HOUSE PRESIDENT Yiannakis Omirou yesterday defended parliament’s decision to vote against a proposal for slashing MPs’ own representation allowance by 15 per cent during Wednesday’s vote on the 2013 budget.

Explaining the decision, Omirou said: “MPs earnings have been reduced as have all employees in the wider public sector based on legislation which

regulates the reduction of salaries and pensions of all public employees in a scaled manner.” He also highlighted that MPs have seen a freeze on wage increases and the cost of living allowance, while they have also made a one-off contribution to the state, as well as accepting taxation of the representation allowance.

“This has in effect meant a total reduction in MPs’ earnings of around 28 per cent,” argued Omirou.

On Wednesday, Greens MP George Perdikis tabled an amendment to the 2013 budget which envisaged

adding MPs to the list of state officials – such as permanent secretaries of ministries – who will see a 15 per cent reduction in their monthly representation allowance. The proposal was backed by only seven deputies.

The Green party released a statement yesterday saying its policy has always been to curb unreasonable and excessive privileges of state and public officials. It was not trying to say MPs were not contributing enough but that deputies and other state officials should lead by example.

Paphos power cuts CONTINUING rains caused power cuts in 15 communities in the Paphos district on Thursday night.

The power went out at around 11pm, when an aerial line was swept away by flood waters flowing from the river of Xeropotamos, affecting the communities of Anarita, Nata, Axylou, Amargeti, Choletria, Kelokedara, Stavrokonou, Asprogia, Pentalia, Statos, Panagia, Kanavi, Yiolou, Pelathousa and Lysos, said Electricity Authority of Cyprus (EAC) spokesman, Costas Gavrielides.

The EAC crew were sent to fix the damage, and were still trying to restore power at 4am, said Gavrielides. Power was restored in most of the 15 communities by yesterday morning, with the exception of Choletria, Kelokedara and Stavrokonou. Power was expected to be restored there as well by last night, Gavrielides added.

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Saturday, December 22, 2012 CYPRUS MAIL

4

Home Property prices slide even further in third quarter as uncertainty grows over economy

By Poly Pantelides PROPERTY prices and rents have been falling island-wide in the third quarter (Q3) of the year with Nicosia and Limassol faring the worst, the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) Cyprus index has shown.

“The worsening state of the Cyprus’ economy and the growing political and economic uncertainty across the eurozone led to a pronounced slowdown in mortgage and corporate lending and a further rise in the rate of unemployment,” the report said.

With the exception of selling “prime homes in the Limassol area,” there were no notable transactions with property being “increasingly viewed as a risky asset and one with negative prospects in the near to medium term,” RICS said.

Nicosia and Limassol have been hit the most, because they were the least affect-

ed markets until recently.

Across Cyprus, rental values in Q3 decreased by 0.3 per cent for apartments, 3.1 per cent for houses, 5.3 per cent for retail units, 1.9 per cent for warehouses, and 0.1 per cent for offices, RICS said.

Compared to Q3 2011, rents have dropped by 3.1 per cent for apartments, 5.8 per cent for houses, 12.6 per cent for retail, 9.8 per cent for warehouses, and 13.1 per cent for offices, the report said.

Residential prices in Q3 for houses fell by 1.1 per cent, and fell by 0.4 per cent for apartments with Larnaca marking the biggest drop with 2.1 per cent for apartments and 4.6 per cent for houses.

Compared to Q3 2011, prices dropped by 6.4 per cent for apartments, 6.7 per cent for houses, 15.1 per cent for retail, 10.8 per cent for offices, and 10.8 per cent for warehouses, the report said.

All around, transaction volume up to October 1

Property is being increasingly viewed as a risky asset and one with negative prospects decreased by 9.0 per cent compared to the same period last year.

Transaction volume was reduced by 21 per cent in Limassol and 19 per cent in Nicosia, while Paphos saw

an increase of 16 per cent and Larnaca of 7 per cent, said member of RICS and consultant, Pavlos Loizou.

“With activity and prices in the main commercial centres of Nicosia and

Limassol only beginning to experience significant declines, the repricing in these markets is expected to accelerate in the coming months,” Loizou said referring to anticipated hikes in

unemployment and wage cuts for civil servants.

“The other cities will continue to experience low levels of demand, as they are heavily reliant on overseas markets,” he added.

‘New downgrade meaningless’

By Stefanos Evripidou THE LATEST downgrade of Cyprus’ sovereign credit rating by two notches means little since Cyprus has been shut out of the international markets since April 2010, said government spokesman Stefanos Stefanou.

Credit rating agency Standard & Poor’s (S&P) downgraded late Thursday Cyprus’ long and short-term sovereign credit rating to `CCC+/C` from `B/B`, citing intensified financing pressures and delay in the agreement on a financial assistance package with international lenders.

This is the third downgrade

by S&P since last August.

“The downgrade reflects our view that Cyprus` credit-

Government reacts as S&P ratings says the risk of a sovereign debt default is considerable and rising worthiness has deteriorated further since the last downgrade on October 17, 2012, as financing pressures have intensified and uncertainty about the terms of any official support persists ahead of the February 2013 presidential elections,” S&P said in a press release.

Stefanou said the rating agency’s evaluation highlighted that the problem of the Cyprus economy was the banking system’s excessive exposure to the Greek economy, while the agency also noted hesitancy among EU partners to reach an agreement for a bailout.

Cyprus is “making every ef-

fort” to conclude agreement on a memorandum with the troika (European Commission, International Monetary Fund, European Central Bank) for a financial bailout, said Stefanou. Beyond that there seem to be problems on a European level, he added.

Finance Minister Vassos Shiarly said the uncertainty over Cyprus’ future had nothing to do with the presidential elections but with the pending estimation by PIMCO of the full recapitalisation needs of Cypriot banks.

According to S&P, “with the government’s financing

options increasingly limited-coupled with what we view as the hesitant attitude of Cyprus’ eurozone partners toward sharing the cost of a severe banking crisis--we view the risk of a sovereign debt default as considerable and rising”.

The rating agency acknowledged progress in the negotiations with the troika, as well as far-reaching spending cuts in the 2013 budget totalling nearly 6 per cent of GDP, adding however that the government’s revenue forecasts for next year “may be too optimistic, given important downside risks to our forecast that GDP will

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contract by 3.5 per cent during 2013”.

Following the loan to the government of €250m by semi-governmental organisations (SGOs) amounting to 1.3 per cent of GDP, S&P said it remained “doubtful” as to the SGO’s capacity to provide further funds, or to roll them over, if a memorandum with the troika is not signed by next March.

“In our view, the critical question of how to finance capital support for the Cypriot banking system, estimated at €95 billion (530 per cent of GDP--total assets of banks whose home country is Cyprus, including overseas operations) remains unanswered,” the agency added.

S&P sees at least a one-inthree chance for a further downgrade in 2013 if assistance is not forthcoming, leaving the Cypriot authori-

ties few choices apart from restructuring financial obligations.

On the other hand, Cyprus’ credit ratings could stabilise at their current low levels if S&P sees that a programme is quickly agreed and if growth prospects, government debt, and external funding needs begin to stabilise, said the US financial agency.

Commenting on the news, House President Yiannakis Omirou said yesterday: “The new downgrade of the economy is worrying,” reiterating the imperative need to speed up the process to sign a memorandum.

DISY number two Averof Neophytou blamed the Demetris Christofias government for putting Cyprus in a position worse than that of Greece.

“Who could have predicted five years ago of the once mighty Cypriot economy, that by the end of the Christofias government, Cyprus’ credit rating would be in a worse position than that of Greece today?” he asked.

LEGAL NOTICE IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUSTICE IN NORTHERN IRELAND CHANCERY DIVISION (COMPANIES WINDING-UP) RE: PROPERTY INTERNATIONAL (PRIVATE CLIENTS) LIMITED TAKE NOTICE that a first final dividend to Ordinary Creditors, being Creditors on or before the 4th of November 2010, is intended to be declared in the above matter. The last day for receiving claims is the 20th February 2013 at the address as set out below and the dividend shall be declared within the period of 2 months from the date thereof.

Dated this 19th day of DECEMBER 2012 BRIGID NAPIER Signed:………………………………………………

LIQUIDATOR 1/9 CASTLE ARCADE BELFAST BT1 5DF

CYPRUS MAIL Saturday, December 22, 2012

5

Home

Mixed messages from abroad on possible Cyprus haircut Russia does not rule out joining in a deal to help stabilise the Cypriot financial sector, says Putin (continued from front page) pressure on the EU to arrange for the direct recapitalisation of banks, instead of providing assistance via the state, something which the Union is not in a position to do at the moment.

Shiarly was at pains to stress yesterday that the IMF has said nothing about a debt haircut. “I don’t believe the IMF would ever think of something like that since the holders of Cypriot bonds are to a large extent Cypriot banks. Who will pay for the haircut? The local banks. The state itself will pay,� he said.

Simply put, the minister highlighted just how catastrophic a debt haircut would be for Cyprus. If the state decided to unilaterally cut its debt to bond holders, this would result in the bond holders (mostly Cypriot banks who effectively provided the government with cash when its coffers were empty) taking a loss on what is owed to them.

In other words, the banks’ new losses would result in even higher sums of money needed to meet their recapitalisation obligations which at this stage they would have to get from the state, increasing the size of the bailout while simultaneously decreasing the sustainability of the public debt.

Asked about the possibility of a second memorandum, should a ďŹ rst one be signed, Shiarly said: “There is no such chance. Every three months, there is a review of the (bailout) programme, where correctional measures can be taken gradually, sometimes increasing the measures, sometimes relaxing them.â€?

Meanwhile, Germany yesterday declined to rule out a writedown of Cypriot sovereign debt, saying instead that all options should be looked at to bring the island’s debt down to sustainable levels.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s spokesman, when asked repeatedly about the possibility, declined to rule it out, saying all steps were on the table. “The ďŹ nancing situation will be looked at in January. And

President Demetris ChristoďŹ as was in a deďŹ ant mood on the idea of a debt haircut yesterday as he was serenaded by the police band (above) and spent much of the day doing the Christmas rounds of the island’s army camps to hand out presents to National Guardsmen all options will need to be examined,â€? Steffen Seibert told a regular government news conference. Asked whether Germany’s position had changed on the Greek debt haircut being a one off thing, he said: “It is clear that the debt sustainability of a country that is receiving help is a decisive factor. And we need to talk about how to reach a sustainable debt level. There are several possibilities.â€?

Eurozone ďŹ nance ministers will meet again on January 21 to discuss a bailout for Cyprus.

By then they expect clarity on how much money Cyprus needs to rescue its banks.

Eurogroup chief Jean-Claude Juncker yesterday dismissed the possibility of a writedown on Cypriot sovereign debt, saying it would put credibility of the eurozone at risk.

‘NO HAIRCUT... NOW’ “We didn’t say all Greekspeaking countries, we said Greece. It is part of the credibility to stick to the signals you have sent,� Juncker told German radio Deutschlandfunk, referring to previous statements ruling out writedowns outside of Greece. “I expect that a haircut will not be part of the instruments that will be used with priority (in Cyprus). I want to exclude that possibility from my side,� he added.

However, Juncker will be stepping down as Eurogroup leader next month.

More disconcerting were the comments of ECB board member Joerg Asmussen who failed to quash the rumours, saying only that a haircut was not up for discussion at the moment as the troika did not yet know the ďŹ nal amount needed by Cypriot banks. “There is no question of a haircut for Cyprus now ... because we have (only) a preliminary ďŹ nancing need for the banks in Cyprus. We will

get the ďŹ nal numbers in midJanuary,â€? Asmussen told German TV station ARD. His next statement appeared to conďŹ rm IMF fears, branding Cyprus’ public debt unsustainable while at the same time making the future privatisation of proďŹ table semi-government organisations like CyTA and the EAC sound almost inevitable. “It is already foreseeable that after the ďŹ nal data, the ďŹ nancing need will be so high that the debt level will be very high and unsustainable,â€? said Asmussen, adding that measures to achieve a budget surplus and privatisations would then be looked at.

A clause in the draft bailout plan stipulates that stateowned companies would have to go up for sale if the debt is deemed unsustainable, something that ChristoďŹ as strongly opposes.

Asked to comment, IMF spokesman Gerry Rice refused to be drawn into the haircut speculation, saying only that talks continue to ďŹ nd a ďŹ nancial solution for Cyprus that will be compatible with a sustainable debt level.

Perhaps the only silver lining for Cyprus yesterday was Russian President Vladimir Putin’s comments at a press conference in Brussels where he said his country could provide support to Cyprus as part of an international bailout, but only after eurozone countries have deďŹ ned the terms of their assistance. “We do not see it as comfortable for ourselves to meddle in this process. But, if... agreement is reached, we do not rule out the possibility to join in with the stabilisation of Cyprus’ ďŹ nancial (position),â€? Putin told reporters following an EU-Russia summit.

Using Russian money to help bailout Cyprus might go some way to convincing the IMF to take part in the rescue package.

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Saturday, December 22, 2012 CYPRUS MAIL

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Fined for stealing €30 worth of food AG to review fines imposed on men who took tuna and cheese

By Poly Pantelides TWO people who stole a few items of food for their families were recently fined hundreds of euros for their action, prompting the attorney-general to request their case files to evaluate the courts’ actions.

“I received two case files today and I will examine the cases to see if the decision is justified,” attorney-general Petros Clerides said yesterday. One man in Larnaca was reportedly fined €250 for stealing canned tuna worth around €8 and a Limassol-based man was asked to pay €700 after he got caught stealing cheese worth €19. The stores notified the police that compiled the charges and forwarded the case to court.

The press published the cases, saying that the Greek Cypriot men, both aged 52, resorted to stealing to feed their families.

One man from Limassol lost his job in April and has been waiting for a disability allowance, daily Phileleftheros said. Because of mobility and health problems, the man has been unable to get another job, Phileleftheros said adding that he got arrested for steal-

ing halloumi cheese in May. For criminal cases that are punishable with five or more years’ imprisonment, the police would have to get the attorney-general’s okay before prosecuting.

But in cases that are punishable with fewer than five years’ imprisonment, the police do not need to consult Clerides.

The police would not – as a matter of course – check in with the attorney-general before prosecuting people for traffic fines or even stealing a few euros’ worth of goods.

Asked if he is reviewing any other similar cases, Clerides said, “these are the two I’ve been made aware of”.

Over 8,000 people have been made jobless in the past year, with now close to 40,000 being unemployed. The figures translate to some 21 jobs being lost on average every day from November last year to November this year. The jobless rate reached a record high of over 12 per cent in the third quarter.

People have been bracing themselves for salary cuts and higher taxes, agreed with Cyprus’ international lenders who are due to bail out the economy. Hundreds of people now rely on charitable contributions to make ends meet.

THIS WEEK IN YOUR

SundayMail Christmas cheer You can still enjoy some without harming a year of exercise

On the edge From formula racing to New Age therapies

Natural history One man’s love of our past leads to the creation of museum

The overall winner in the photo category was ‘Ageless Joy’, taken by Salih Bahçeci’,

Celebrating the third age in digital form THE Cyprus Third Age Association (C3A) was one of the winners of the 2012 DigiMe digital photo and video competition, sponsored by the Representation of the European Commission in Cyprus and taking as its theme the European Year for Active Ageing and Solidarity between Generations.

This was the second year of the DigiMe digital video and photo competition.

C3A received an honourable mention – and a €100 voucher for electronic gadgets – for a series of photographs showing the group’s educational activities which, as the judges said, illustrated vividly Active Ageing in Action.

The overall winner in the photo category was ‘Ageless Joy”, taken

by Salih Bahçeci’, a student of digital media at London Metropolitan University, while the short clip ‘An ordinary life of my grandparents’ by Andreas Psaltis, a final year pupil at

the Grammar School, Nicosia, who won the video prize. The two category winners each received an iPad. There were also honourable mentions for Elly Roussou for the photo entitled ‘Youth has no Age’, for Yetin Arslan with ‘Fairy-tale Cycle’ and Cyprus Third Age for “C3A Absorbed, Researching and Investigating.”

Speaking at the prize-giving ceremony held at the House for Cooperation in Nicosia’s Buffer Zone, the Head of Representation of the European Commission in Cyprus George Markopouliotis said: “We at the Representation are happy to support this online event and we do hope that it will carry on with the same success for a few more years to come.

“Our intention was to to raise awareness of the contribution that older people make to society and I think that the entries to the competition do this quite admirably.

“It is also clear that these issues,

like the environment and climate change in last year’s competition, are obviously of concern to all communities in Cyprus.”

Two-thirds of this year’s entries came from Greek Cypriots and approximately one-third from the Turkish Cypriot community.

Entries in the DigiMe competition are not judged on artistic merit alone but also on relevance andon the impact they have online.

There were more than 100 entries in all which attracted nearly 3,000 votes on the DigiMe website, more than 2,000 YouTube views and nearly 4,000 likes and comments on Facebook.

The DigiMe competition is managed on behalf of the Representation of the European Commission in Cyprus by the NGO Support Centre and the Cyprus Community Media Centre.

Entries can be viewed at the DigiMe website www.digime.org.cy

Shopowners unite for business boost SHOPOWNERS on Themistoclis Dervis Avenue in Nicosia will unite to form a single market from today.

According to a statement, the historic part of the capital offers the public a multitude of choices that can satisfy every needs. Cafés, restaurants, clothes shops, shoe shops, jewellery stores, cosmetic stores and pet shops are only a few of the different choices that can be found on the street, they said.

The shop owners are calling on the public to leave their problems behind and visit the market which will take place in a festive atmosphere.

There will be music, surprises and presents for all of those turning up as well as special offers at the different shops involved.

The shops that will be taking part in the market will have clearly marked signs in their windows. Nicosia Mayor Constantinos Yiorkadjis will officially open the market on today at noon.

CYPRUS MAIL Saturday, December 22, 2012

7

Home

‘Disastrous year’ for migratory birds Trapping hits an 11-year high, enough to have killed 2.1 million birds islandwide AUTUMN 2012 trapping levels have hit a new 11-year high since the start of the BirdLife Cyprus field surveillance programme in 2002, exceeding even the record levels recorded in 2010, the organisation said yesterday.

“This picture is disappointing as it reveals an ecological disaster that took place during the Cyprus Presidency, and despite all the continuous calls from BirdLife Cyprus for effective measures to be taken to tackle this chronic problem. The ‘zero tolerance’ approach promised last year at the Bern Convention Conference in Larnaca by the Cyprus and UK competent authorities has clearly not been translated into more effective deterrent action on the ground,” BirdLife said in an announcement yesterday.

It said that an estimated 17km of net rides (corridors within vegetation used for setting mist nets) were in active use by trappers within the 400 square kilometre area covered by the organisation’s monitoring in Autumn 2012.

Mist netting activity was up by 11 per cent compared to autumn 2011 and limestick use was extensive, with more than 10,000 limesticks confiscated by the competent authorities.

“The Republic of Cyprus needs to urgently deal with the resurgence in limestick use and the restaurants serving illegally ambelopoulia, while the Dhekelia SBA has become a mist net-

ting hotspot, with recorded mist net use in the Bases ten times higher than in the Republic,” said the organisation.

BirdLife estimates that trapping levels were sufficient to kill 1.6 million birds in its study area alone during autumn 2012 and over 2.1 million for Cyprus as a whole.

Furthermore, records have shown that over 150 different bird species are killed in mist nets and on limesticks, many of them threatened, a clear indication of the nonselective nature of these methods, it said.

‘The last three years we have seen a dramatic increase in this illegal activity, with mist netting levels reaching around 45 per cent of the alarming levels in the 1990s, when enforcement was basically non-existent’, says BirdLife Cyprus Campaigns Manager, Martin Hellicar.

‘This is a serious conservation setback, particularly if we consider that trapping was down to around 10 per cent of 1990s levels in the period 2002-2006. Something needs to change and fast if the competent authorities are serious about tackling this problem. We need to see real, top-level political will in London and Nicosia’, concluded Hellicar.

BirdLife Cyprus is cranking up its awareness-raising this month “and for the end of this disastrous year” for migratory birds, with antitrapping messages presented on billboards in Nicosia

Moving further away from a Cyprus solution

By Poly Panteldies GREEK Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots are becoming more reluctant to vote in favour of a comprehensive solution to the Cyprus problem, channelling information and knowledge to confirm stereotypes rather than become more accepting of a solution, research by ‘Cyprus 2015’ has shown.

A total of 51 per cent of Greek Cypriots said they would vote “no” in a future referendum with only 18 per cent, a record low, saying they would vote “yes”, the report said. Turkish Cypriots have also become more negative, with 42 per cent saying they would vote “no”.

People’s responses have also reversed a standing assumption that “more knowledge among citizens would automatically lead to increased acceptance of a potential peace plan,” the researchers said. Instead, “the data shows that more information merely works to confirm existing stereotypes and consolidate pre-existing trends,” Cyprus 2015 said.

The researchers attribute this to lack of public participation in the way settlement proposals are actually

formed. A total of 80 per cent of Greek Cypriots and 78 per cent of Turkish Cypriots said, for example, that they wanted civil society groups to play a more meaningful role in the peace process as long as those organisations represented the public’s views.

Among Greek Cypriots, it is women and younger people who are less likely to vote “yes” with women also reporting being more fearful of Turkish Cypriots. Older people and men are more likely to vote “yes”.

Among Turkish Cypriots, age and gender are not significant factors; however the settlers from Turkey and the relatives of missing persons and those killed in intercommunal fighting were more likely to vote against a solution.

On both sides of the divide, people are influenced by their party’s position. “Parties seem to be operating as ‘interpretive communities’ in which information about the peace process is converted into final evaluations,” the report said.

Some 1,000 people were interviewed, 500 Greek Cypriots and 500 Turkish Cypriots.

The ‘Cyprus 2015’ project started in May 2009 under the auspices of the UN and the European Commission.

and messages played on radio stations. “The message that we are trying to communicate to the general public is that bird trapping is extensive and large scale, is non-selective, has become a profitable business worth millions of euros, and all this is presented as ‘tradition’ by the supporters of trapping,” said BirdLife Cyprus Executive Director Dr Clairie Papazoglou. “Our aim is to make the public realise the extent of bird trapping and we ask the people to make a gift to nature this Christmas and say NO to ambelopoulia.”

Yesterday officers from the Game Fund and the police anti-poaching unit confiscated over 100 limesticks and over 500 dead wild birds, as well as a device emitting wild bird sounds used to lure birds into traps.

The loot was discovered after raids on two restaurants in Agios Theodoros and Alethriko in Larnaca.

BirdLife has launched publicity campaigns to try and help stop the slaughter

Saturday, December 22, 2012 CYPRUS MAIL

8

Europe

Russia lawmakers back adoption ban in row with US RUSSIA’S lower house of parliament approved a law banning Americans from adopting Russian children yesterday, in retaliation for U.S. human rights legislation which Vladimir Putin says is poisoning relations.

The State Duma overwhelmingly backed a bill which also outlaws US-funded “non-profit organisations that engage in political activity”, extending what critics say is a clampdown on Putin’s opponents since he returned to the presidency in May. The law responds to US legislation known as the Magnitsky Act, passed by the US Congress to impose visa bans and asset freezes on Russian officials accused of involvement in the death in custody of anti-corruption lawyer Sergei Magnitsky in 2009.

Washington’s ambassador to Moscow, Michael McFaul, said the Russian bill unfairly “linked the fate of orphaned children to unrelated political issues”.

Putin hinted at a news conference on Thursday that he would sign it into law once the Senate votes on it next week, describing it as an emotional but appropriate response to an unfriendly move by the United States.

“It is a myth that all children who land in American families are happy and surrounded by love,” Olga Batalina, a deputy with Putin’s ruling United Russia party, said in defence of the new measures.

In a pointed echo of the Magnitsky Act, the Russian legislation has become known as the Dima Yakovlev law, after a Russian-born toddler who died after his American adoptive father left him locked in a sweltering car.

The law has outraged Russian liberals who say children are being made victims of politics. Some government officials, including Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, have expressed reservations about the legislation.

“Children should not be a bargaining chip in international affairs,” said Mikhail Fedotov, the head of the Kremlin’s human rights council.

Last year, 962 Russian children from orphanages were adopted by Americans while more than 45,000 have found homes in the United States since the 1991 Soviet collapse. Their parents are either dead or unable to care for them and some have complex medical needs.

Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti (unseen, seated in car back seat) leaves Rome’s Quirinale Presidential palace yesterday after handing in his resignation to President

Giorgio Napolitano, following final approval by lawmakers of a budget bill that will pave the way for early Italy elections in February (AFP)

Gender price ban likely to raise insurance costs EU outlaws insurers’ practice of gender-based premiums

By Myles Neligan

A woman holds a poster reading: ‘Don’t deprive children of a chance to find a family!’ outside the State Duma in Moscow

Court overturns Google chiefs’ video convictions THE convictions of three Google executives charged over a video on one of the internet giant’s sites showing a disabled teen being bullied have been overturned by an Italian appeals court.

Google called yesterday’s ruling “a total victory.”

A lower court in 2010 held the executives criminally responsible for the posting of the video.

The verdict raised concerns that internet platforms could be forced to police their content, contrasting European privacy concerns with the freewheeling nature of the internet.

Google said it removed the video in question within two hours of being notified by authorities.

The appellate ruling in Milan throws out the convictions against Google’s global privacy counsel Peter Fleischer, its senior vice president and chief legal officer David Drummond and retired chief financial officer George Reyes.

The three were convicted of privacy violations for a 2006 video posted on Google Video, a video-sharing service Google ran before the company acquired YouTube later that year.

None of the executives charged in the case were in any way involved in the posting of the video and Google said they took it down within two hours of being notified by authorities.

Google, in its final arguments before the court, noted 72 hours-worth of video is posted on YouTube every minute - which would be impossible to preview.

That is up from 20 hours of video a minute at the time of the initial verdict.

Google and other hosting platforms generally rely on other users flagging objectionable content.

A EUROPEAN Union ban on insurers using gender to set prices, which came into force yesterday, will likely lead to higher insurance costs for consumers.

The EU’s highest court outlawed insurers’ practice of charging men and women different prices as sex discrimination in March 2011 after Belgium’s consumer association brought a test case against it.

The move has drawn criticism from insurers who say gender exerts a strong influence over how likely a person is to claim, and should be reflected in the premiums they pay.

“It is bonkers, absolutely bonkers,” said Kevin Ryan, an insurance analyst at Investec in London.

“It is extraordinary saying

people cannot compete on underwriting factors. But, broadly for insurers, it will be viewed as good news because prices will go up.”

KEY MARKETS Higher prices would be welcomed by a European insurance industry squeezed by rock-bottom interest rates and recession in several key markets.

Insurers typically charge lower prices for women drivers because they are statistically less likely to crash than men.

They also offer male retirees who buy annuities - investment policies that pay a regular income for the remainder of the customer’s lifetime - more generous payments than women because men die sooner, on average.

The biggest changes were

expected in the motor insurance market where women below the age of 25 will, from Friday, pay up to 40 per cent more to eliminate the discount they enjoy relative to men, accountants PricewaterhouseCoopers estimated.

Insurers won’t match the increases in female motor premiums with lower rates for male drivers, boosting revenues, although the gain will be competed away over time, said Bjorn Norrman, an analyst at credit rating agency Fitch.

EXTRA MARGIN “I would assume that in the beginning you will see much more increases for younger female drivers than you will see decreases for young male drivers,” he said.

Insurers’ new prices will also likely include an extra

margin to absorb set-up costs and provide a buffer against changes in the ratio of male to female customers, which could alter the number of claims they receive, Norrman said.

European motor insurers have been faced with sluggish price growth because of intense competition, exacerbated in the past decade by the rise of price-comparison websites.

Insurers seeking to comply with the ban face a choice between introducing a “unisex” rate pitched between the higher and lower prices they currently charge, or by bringing the lower rate into line with the higher one.

German insurers’ association GDV said there would be no price benefit to consumers overall as supposedly unisex prices will, in practice, be too high for either men or women.

Pope signals desire for an inter-religion alliance against gay unions POPE Benedict, indicating the Vatican’s desire to forge alliances with other religions against gay marriage, on Friday said the family was threatened “to its foundations” by attempts to change its “true structure”.

The pope made his latest denunciation of gay marriage in a Christmas address to Vatican officials in which he blended religion, philosophy, an-

thropology and sociology to illustrate the position of the Roman Catholic Church.

He threw the full weight of his office behind a study by France’s chief rabbi on the effects the legalisation of gay marriage would have on children and society.

“There is no denying the crisis that threatens it to its foundations - especially in the Western world,” the pope

said, adding it had to be protected because it is “the authentic setting in which to hand on the blueprint of human existence”.

The 85-year-old pope, speaking in the frescoed Clementine Hall of the Vatican’s Apostolic Palace, said the family was being threatened by “a false understanding of freedom” and a repudiation of life-long commitment in heterosexual marriage.

CYPRUS MAIL Saturday, December 22, 2012

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Britain

Mitchell praised for his ‘rational’ plebgate response

Former army doctor is struck off register

DAVID Cameron praised Andrew Mitchell’s “calm and rational” response to the plebgate affair yesterday in another hint the former chief whip could be set for a comeback.

The Prime Minister said Tories had “a lot of sympathy” for their colleague’s situation.

He also disclosed that he met Mitchell in Number 10 on Monday - the day before Channel 4 News aired allegations that a serving policeman posed as a member of the public and falsely claimed to have witnessed his now notorious spat in Downing Street.

Cameron’s comments, made to journalists during a trip to Afghanistan, came as the police continue to investigate the possibility that the ex-Cabinet minister was the victim of a conspiracy.

In a sign of deepening tensions with the police, Mitchell has reportedly sought assurances that Scotland Yard chief Bernard Hogan-Howe will not be involved in the investigation.

The former chief whip is said to be sceptical about the Commissioner’s impartiality after he said this week that he still had no reason to doubt the account of Downing Street police of their altercation with Mitchell.

“I don’t think from what I’ve heard up to now that it’s really affected the original account of the officers at the scene,” he told LBC radio.

Police arrested and questioned a second man in their investigation on Thursday.

A 23-year-old, who is not a police officer or member of police staff, was detained on suspicion of intentionally encouraging or assisting the commission of an indictable offence on December 14, Scot-

Physician guilty of misconduct over death of detainee The former Tory chief whip could be set for a comeback

By Pat Hurst

land Yard said.

That date was a day before a member of the diplomatic protection group was arrested on suspicion of misconduct in public office.

The officer is said to have emailed his local MP, Tory deputy chief whip John Randall, posing as a member of the public and accusing Mr Mitchell of calling police “plebs”.

The Met has widened the investigation amid growing tensions with senior Conservatives over the treatment of Mitchell, who resigned in October after a month of huge pressure.

Around 30 officers are working on the inquiry, which is being supervised by the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC).

Asked on Thursday whether Mitchell could make a comeback, Cameron said: “One step at a time. Let’s get to the truth about what happened. But I think it has been an extraordinary development ... to find a police officer apparently posing as a member of the public, pretending to have been outside Downing Street at the time and trying to blacken the name of a Cabinet minister.”

A FORMER Army doctor found guilty of misconduct by medical watchdogs over the death of Iraqi detainee Baha Mousa was struck off the register yesterday.

Dr Derek Keilloh, 38, now a respected family GP, looked down and blinked slowly as the decision was delivered at the conclusion of a marathon 47-day hearing by the Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service (MPTS) sitting in Manchester.

He supervised a failed resuscitation attempt to save the life of Mousa, who had been hooded, handcuffed and severely beaten by soldiers after his arrest as a suspected insurgent in war-torn Basra in September 2003.

Dr Keilloh, then a captain and regimental medical officer of the 1st Battalion, Queen’s Lancashire Regiment (1QLR), claimed later that he saw only dried blood around the nose of Mousa, 26, while giving mouth-to-mouth and CPR. His body swollen and bruised, Mousa, a father of two, had suffered 93 separate injuries, including fractured ribs and a broken nose.

Dr Derek Keilloh leaves the GMC in Manchester yesterday, where he was removed from the medical register An innocent hotel receptionist, he was arrested in an Army crackdown by soldiers who believed, wrongly, that he was an insurgent involved in the murder of four of their colleagues the month before.

The MPTS found Dr Keilloh guilty of misconduct following Mr Mousa’s death and an-

nounced “with regret” today that the only “appropriate sanction” was banning him from working as a doctor.

The panel heard that at the time of Mousa’s death, Dr Keilloh was aged 28, eight weeks into the job, an inexperienced and inadequately-trained young medic,

given little supervision or support by the QLR, which was fighting a growing insurgency in the chaotic and lawless sprawling southern city in Iraq.

The MPTS recognised Dr Keilloh, now a GP at Mayford House Surgery in Northallerton, North Yorkshire, never harmed Mousa and did “everything possible” to save his life, in a setting that was “highly charged, chaotic, tense and stressful”.

But they ruled he must have seen the injuries and, especially as a doctor, had a duty to act.

They questioned his honesty and “probity” after he lied to Army investigators about the injuries and, in sticking to his story, giving evidence in subsequent court martials and a public inquiry.

The MPTS also said Dr Keilloh, knowing of Mousa’s injuries and sudden death, did not do enough to protect his patients, the other detainees, from further mistreatment - breaking a “fundamental tenet” of the medical profession.

He told soldiers not to beat other detainees, but the panel ruled he should have blown the whistle to senior officers about what went on.

The MPTS decision said it was the “repeated dishonesty” in claiming not to have seen injuries to Mousa that was wholly unacceptable.

Dr Brian Alderman said: “In all the circumstances, the panel determined that erasure is the only appropriate sanction in this case.

“It is considered that this action is the only way proper standards of conduct and behaviour may be upheld and trust in the profession as a whole may be restored.”

Hold-ups combine to delay Christmas getaways Cancer boy can have radiotherapy - High Court FLOODS, signal failures and even animals on rail tracks combined to hold up millions of travellers yesterday as the Christmas getaway began.

Flooding affected a number of rail services, which were also delayed when animals got on to the line near Micklefield in Yorkshire.

One of the worst of the delays was due to a signal problem at Hayes & Harlington in west London.

This caused long hold-ups to those travelling by rail to Heathrow on the west London airport’s busiest day of the Christmas period.

Buses had to replace trains due to flooding on a number of lines, while on the London

THIS WEEK IN YOUR

Underground the whole of the Jubilee Line was closed at the start of services due to a signalling system problem.

The Jubilee Line was up and running with delays by the heart of the morning rushhour, but other Tube travellers had to contend with severe delays on the Bakerloo Line due to a signalling failure at Paddington in west London.

Yesterday was the busiest day on the roads as well. Those setting off early faced a number of flooded routes, with the Isle of Wight and Brockenhurst in the New Forest, Hampshire, particularly badly affected.

One lane was closed on the busiest section of the M25 - at junction 15 near Heathrow due to an accident.

A seven-year-old boy can have radiotherapy treatment, following surgery on a brain tumour, against his mother’s wishes, a High Court judge ruled yesterday.

Sally Roberts, 37, a New Zealander who lives in Brighton, East Sussex, said she feared radiotherapy would cause long-term harm to her son Neon, and argued that “credible” alternative treatment was available.

Specialists treating Neon accepted that there were side-effects to radiotherapy but said that without the treatment the youngster could die within a few months.

Mr Justice Bodey, who heard evidence at a hearing in the Family Division of the High Court in London, said radiotherapy treatment could start.

SundayMail

WIN AN OVERNIGHT STAY FOR TWO AT ST RAPHAEL HOTEL ENTER OUR COMPETITION (living page 28)

“The mother has been through a terrible time. This sort of thing is every parent’s nightmare,” said the judge.

“But I am worried that her judgment has gone awry on the question of the seriousness of the threat which Neon faces.”

Roberts had told the court she was not a “bonkers mother”.

She said she feared radiotherapy would reduce Neon’s IQ, shorten his life, put him at risk of having strokes and make him infertile. And she told the judge that she wanted medics to consider alternatives.

Neon’s father Ben, who lives in London and is separated from Ms Roberts, had agreed to radiotherapy but was “apprehensive”, the court heard.

Saturday, December 22, 2012 CYPRUS MAIL

10

World WORLD TODAY North Korea charges American NORTH Korea said yesterday it had detained an American tourist on charges of perpetrating a crime against the state and is putting him through criminal proceedings, indicating it is set to try him.

Kenneth Bae, a Korean American tourist who travelled to visit North Korea last month, has been detained by police in the reclusive state, associates of his family and activists in Seoul said last week.

His custody comes amid tension between Pyongyang and Washington over a recent North Korean rocket launch, which US officials consider a provocative test of ballistic missile technology.

“In the process of investigation, evidence proving that he committed a crime against the DPRK was revealed. He admitted his crime,” the state news agency KCNA reported.

KCNA provided no details of Bae’s condition or of the crime he was charged with.

India rape demos THE gang-rape of a young woman in New Delhi has sparked public outrage across India, bringing thousands of people onto city streets in protest against authorities’ failure to ensure women’s safety.

Sexual violence against women often goes unremarked and unreported in India, but yesterday hundreds of students and activists blockaded roads in New Delhi and marched to the president’s palace, breaking through police barricades despite watercanon fire to demand the culprits’ execution.

The 23-year-old woman is battling for her life in hospital after she was beaten, gang-raped for almost an hour and thrown out of a moving bus on a busy street of the capital last Sunday.

Five people accused of the attack have been arrested.

Malala plea THE Pakistani teenager who was shot by the Taliban for promoting girls’ education has urged her country to reverse a decision to rename a college in her honour to avert militant attacks on students.

Malala Yousufzai, 15, who became a symbol of youth resistance to the Taliban, made the request after students broke into the school, tore down her pictures and boycotted classes in her home town of Mingora.

They said renaming the college endangered their lives.

30 slain as raiders burn Kenya village RAIDERS armed with guns, machetes and spears killed 30 people, including several children, and torched their houses in Kenya’s coastal region yesterday, police said, heightening security concerns ahead of next year’s election.

Nine of the raiders were also killed in what appeared to have been a revenge attack by settled Pokomo farmers against the semi-nomadic Orma pastoralists after a series of clashes in August in which more than 100 people were killed.

The two groups have fought for years over access to grazing, farmland and water, but human rights groups have blamed the latest violence on politicians seeking to drive away parts of the local population they believe will vote for their rivals in presidential and parliamentary elections in March.

If those charges are true, it further raises fears of a repeat of the ethnic violence that rocked Kenya after the disputed 2007 presidential election, in which more than 1,200 people were killed countrywide and many more thousands driven from their homes.

“About 150 Pokomo raiders attacked Kipao village which is inhabited by the Ormas early on Friday. The Ormas ap-

peared to have been aware and were prepared,” Robert Kitur, Coast Region deputy police chief, told reporters.

One survivor said the attackers struck at dawn.

‘GUNS, SPEARS, MACHETES’ “There were too many gunshots. They used also spears and machetes. I ran out of my house and left behind my wife and two children, and told them not to leave ... but the enemies reached my house, killed my family and burnt my house as I watched from where I was hiding,” said Osman Amran, 63, of the Orma tribe, who lay on a hospital bed with deep cut wounds on both thighs.

President Mwai Kibaki instructed security forces to prevent further deaths.

Kibaki imposed a curfew in September and sent extra security forces to the area to try to end the violence, intensified by an influx of weapons in the last few years.

Police sent an additional team of 200 paramilitary officers to the region to quell the fighting.

Police had already been deployed to the area in September after the at-

tacks in August. It was unclear how the latest violence erupted while officers were on the ground, something which also baffling to the police.

“We are still trying to establish how these attacks escaped the knowledge of the officers on the ground. The officers responded after most of the damage had been done,” Kitur said.

Police said six women and 13 children were among the dead and nine of the attackers were killed. Many bled to death from wounds inflicted with machetes.

The village was deserted as the survivors fled for fear of further attacks.

Kenya Red Cross, which has a team on the ground treating the wounded, put the death toll at 32, including several children, with about 45 houses set on fire. Red Cross photographs posted on Twitter showed the injured being treated for serious cuts to the arms and head.

One person had lost an arm.

“We have been administering first aid services to many with cuts, some very deep on various body parts especially the head and back. Others have burns and bullet wounds,” said Mwanaisha Hamisi, the Coast regional Red Cross coordinator.

Children, injured during the attack, are treated at the Malindi District Hospital

Dawn of a new Mayan era as doomsday over

US gun lobby goes on offensive

Maya ruins are the site of diverse celebrations

THE powerful U.S. gun rights lobby went on the offensive yesterday arguing that schools should have armed guards, on a day Americans remembered the victims of the Newtown, Connecticut school massacre with a moment of silence.

“The only thing that stops a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun,” said Wayne LaPierre, chief executive of the National Rifle Association, noting that banks and airports are patrolled by armed guards, while schools typically are not.

His remarks - in which he charged that the news media and violent video games shared blame for the seconddeadliest school shooting in US history - were twice interrupted by protesters who unfurled signs and shouted “stop the killing”.

Speaking in Washington, LaPierre urged lawmakers to station armed police officers in all schools by the time students return from the Christmas break in January.

LaPierre did not take questions from reporters.

Earlier yesterday, church bells rang out in tree-lined suburban Newtown and up and down the East Coast at 9.30am EST (1430 GMT) in memory of the victims of the attack on December 14 in which 28 people, including the gunman, were killed.

LaPierre’s comments came at the end of a week when President Barack Obama commissioned a new White House task force to find a way to quell violence, a challenge in a nation with a strong culture of individual gun ownership.

“We have to have a comprehensive way in which to respond to the mass murder of our children that we saw in Connecticut,” Vice President Joe Biden, who heads the task force, said on Thursday.

By Alexandra Alper DAWN broke over ancient holy sites in southern Mexico to celebrations yesterday, ushering in the start of a new era for the Maya people that had been billed as a possible end of the world.

A mix of mystics, hippies and tourists from around the world descended on the ruins of Maya cities to mark the close of the 13th bak’tun - a period of around 400 years and many hoped it would lead to a better era for humanity.

After the sun went up in Mexico and the world continued to spin, visitors to the Maya heartland gave thanks.

The end of the bak’tun in the 5,125-year-old Long Calendar of the Maya had raised scattered fears around the globe that the end is nigh or that lesser catastrophe lay in store.

However, to the people congregating in the imposing ruins of the city of Chichen Itza, a focal point for the celebrations in Mexico, it was quite the opposite.

“It’s not the end of the world, it’s an awakening of consciousness and good and love and spirituality - and it’s been happening for a while,” said Mary Lou Anderson, 53, an information technology consultant from Las Vegas.

Fears of mass suicides, huge power cuts, natural disasters, epidemics or an asteroid hurtling toward Earth have circulated on the Internet ahead

A tourist raises her hands during a group meditation at sunrise near the pyramid of Kukulkan at the archaeological zone of Chichen Itza in Yucatan State yesterday of December 21.

A US scholar said in the 1960s that the end of the 13th bak’tun could be seen as a kind of Armageddon for the Maya. Over time, the idea snowballed into a belief by some that the Maya calendar had predicted the earth’s destruction.

A few minutes before the north pole reached its position furthest from the sun yesterday, a spotlight illuminated the western flank of the Temple of the serpent god Kukulkan, a 100-foot (30metre) pyramid at the heart of Chichen Itza.

Then a group of five Englishspeaking tourists dressed in

white made their way across the plain, dropped their bags and faced the pyramid with their arms raised.

As the sun climbed into the sky, a man with dreadlocks played a didgeridoo at the north end of the pyramid while a group of tourists meditated on brightly colored mats.

In Turkey, thousands of tourists flocked to Sirince, a picturesque village east of the Aegean Sea that believers in a potential cataclysm had said would be spared on yesterday.

In Bugarach, France, a village said to be harbouring an alien spacecraft in a nearby

mountain that would enable people to survive an apocalypse, authorities cordoned off the area, fearing an influx of doomsday believers.

In New York, Buck Wolf, executive editor of crime and weird news for the Huffington Post, organized an end of the world party at Manhattan’s Hotel Chantelle on Thursday night.

In China, the United Nations issued a tweet on its official Weibo microblog denying it was selling tickets for an “ark” in which people could escape the apocalypse after people started selling such tickets online, albeit apparently as a joke.

CYPRUS MAIL Saturday, December 22, 2012

11

World Protests after Iraq minister’s bodyguard held

Clashes erupt in Egypt before final constitution vote Rocks and teargas mark Alexandria battles

By Tamim Elyan SUPPORTERS of President Mohamed Mursi and his opponents hurled rocks at each other in Egypt’s second city on the eve of a final vote on an Islamist-influenced constitution that has divided the country.

Police fired tear gas to separate scores of opponents of the constitution and thousands of Islamists who clashed in the rain near a mosque in Alexandria yesterday. Health officials said more than 20 people were injured.

“God is great,” Islamists chanted as the clashes began.

The Islamists had gathered in support of an Islamic vision of Egypt’s future a day before a second round of voting in a referendum on the basic law. Opposition supporters had also turned out as worshippers assembled for Friday prayers.

Mursi and his Islamist allies back the draft constitu-

tion as a vital step in Egypt’s transition to democracy almost two years after the fall of Hosni Mubarak.

The opposition says the draft, drawn up by an Islamist-dominated assembly, is a recipe for deeper divisions and more violence.

The Muslim Brotherhood called for the rally in Alexandria to protest after a violent confrontation between Islamists and the liberal, secular opposition last week ended with a Muslim preacher besieged inside his mosque for 14 hours.

Rival factions had used clubs, knives and swords last week, but this time police kept the feuding sides apart, although witnesses saw several protesters and one police officer being helped away. Some protesters had head wounds.

The run-up to the final round of voting on the new constitution today has been marked by often violent protests that have cost at least eight lives.

The first round on December

15 produced a “yes” vote that is expected to be repeated in the second round.

Lines of riot police cordoned off Alexandria’s al-Qaid Ibrahim mosque, scene of last week’s violence. Islamists chanted pro-Islamic slogans while a smaller group of opponents gathered nearby, chanting against Mursi, propelled to power in a June election by the Muslim Brotherhood.

“The people want the implementation of sharia,” the Islamist sympathizers shouted, in a show of support for Islamic law.

In one incident, an Islamist filming anti-Mursi protesters was grabbed and roughed up. Islamists on the other side of a security cordon pushed and shoved police trying to reach him.

The opposition, facing defeat in the referendum, has called for a “no” vote against a document it says is too Islamist and ignores the rights of women and minorities, including the 10 per cent of Egyptians who are Christian.

‘Syria minorities face reprisal risk’ THE U.N. anti-genocide envoy has warned that minority groups in Syria, including Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s fellow Alawites, are at risk of major reprisal attacks as the 21-month-old conflict escalates and sectarian violence increases.

“I am deeply concerned that entire communities risk paying the price for crimes committed by the Syrian government,” Adama Dieng, UN special adviser on the prevention of genocide, said in a statement on Thursday.

The statement said Alawites and other minorities in Syria were increasingly under threat of large-scale reprisal attacks because they are widely associated with the government and allied militia.

Rebels began to push into a strategic town in Syria’s central Hama province on Thursday and laid siege to at least one town dominated

by Alawites, activists said.

Opposition sources said rebels had won some territory in the strategic southern town of Morek and were sur-

A Free Syrian Army fighter is seen carrying an anti-tank missile in Aleppo yesterday rounding the Alawite town of al-Tleisia.

The rebel operation risks inflaming already raw sectarian tensions as the revolt against four decades of Assad family rule - during which the president’s Alawite sect has dominated leadership of the Sunni Muslim

majority - rumbles on.

“I urge all parties in the conflict to adhere to international humanitarian and human rights law, which prohibits the targeting of individuals or groups based on religious or ethnic identity as well as attacks against civilians not taking direct part in hostilities,” Dieng said.

“I also call on all actors to condemn hate speech that could constitute incitement to violence against communities based on their religious affiliation,” said Dieng.

Sunnis have seen themselves as disenfranchised by Assad’s Alawite minority, an offshoot of Shi’ite Islam that dominates Syria’s power and security structures. Shi’ites and Christians are also sizable minorities in Syria.

UN human rights investigators said in Geneva on Thursday that Syria’s conflict was becoming more sectarian, with more civilians seeking to arm themselves and foreign fighters - mostly Sunnis - flocking in from 29 countries.

EU, Russia condemn Israel settlement expansion plans THE European Union and Russia yesterday denounced Israel’s plans to expand settlements in the occupied West Bank and urged Israelis and Palestinians to take “bold and concrete steps towards peace”.

Israeli officials said this week they would press on with plans to build 6,000 homes for settlers on land claimed by Palestinians, defying criticism from Western powers who fear the move will damage already faint hopes for a peace accord.

“The European Union and the Russian Federation are deeply dismayed by and strongly oppose Israeli plans to expand settlements in the West Bank and in particular plans to develop the E1 area,” Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton said in a statement. E1 is a wedge of land between East Jerusalem and the West Bank where Israel had previously held off under US pressure.

Egyptian opponents and supporters of President Mohamed Mursi clash in Alexandria yesterday (AFP) Anti-Mursi protester Ali al-Banna, a 51-year-old businessman, said: “We reject the constitution. Mursi’s legitimacy has collapsed and we will bring him down.”

The first day of voting on December 15 resulted in a 57 per cent majority in favour of the constitution. The second

stage today is expected to produce a similar result as it covers regions seen as more conservative and likely to back Mursi.

The constitution must be in place before a parliamentary election can be held. If it passes, the poll should be held within two months.

SUNNI leaders in Iraq accused Shi’ite Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki of a crackdown yesterday after troops detained a Sunni minister’s bodyguards, setting off protests in one province and threatening to reignite a political crisis.

The incident came hours after President Jalal Talabani, a Kurd who has mediated among Sunni, Shi’ite and Kurdish factions, left for Germany after suffering a stroke that may end his steadying influence over politics.

Talabani’s absence and political tension has renewed pressure on Iraq’s fragile power-sharing government, which is split among sects and ethnic Kurds and has stumbled from crisis to crisis since US soldiers withdrew in December 2011.

Maliki has often managed to play his rivals off against one another and strengthen his alliances in the complex political landscape before provincial elections next year and a parliamentary vote in 2014.

Several thousand demonstrators took to the streets in the Sunni stronghold of Anbar after prayers, blocking a highway in Falluja to demand Maliki’s resignation.

Saturday, December 22, 2012 CYPRUS MAIL

12

Business ‘Introduce break-up threat to UK banks’

‘Fiscal cliff’ drag having less than feared econ cost

BRITAIN needs to introduce legislation that could break up banks if standards slip because current reform proposals fall short of what is needed, an influential panel of lawmakers said.

The Parliamentary Commission on Banking Standards also said yesterday the government could set tougher rules for how much leverage banks were allowed, adding that the committee itself would consider whether to propose banning proprietary trading.

Britain, going further than most countries in pushing through change, is forcing banks to separate, or “ringfence”, their domestic retail arms from riskier investment banking.

“The proposals, as they stand, fall well short of what is required. Over time, the ringfence will be tested and challenged by the banks,” PCBS chairman Andrew Tyrie said.

“That is why we recommend electrification. The legislation needs to set out a reserve power for separation; the regulator needs to know he can use it.”

The Treasury said finance minister George Osborne will consider the proposals and respond when reforms are brought to Parliament early next year.

Osborne appears unlikely to go as far as the PCBS wants.

A previous Commission, led

by John Vickers, said a full break-up of banks was not needed, and Osborne may decide that if the ring-fence plan proved to be flawed, the Treasury could then introduce fresh legislation to strengthen it.

Britain wants to prevent a repeat of the need for taxpayers to bail out lenders, as happened in 2008 with a £65-billion ($106-billion) double rescue of Lloyds Banking Group and Royal Bank of Scotland.

Consumer spending up by most in three years

These Bank of Cyprus rates for telegraphic transfer transactions (spot deals) apply to yesterday, but provide a good guide to today’s value against the euro.

Buying Selling Pound St

0.8165 0.8083

US Dollar

1.3265 1.3133

Australian $

1.2785 1.2469

Canadian Dol.

1.3228 1.2902

Swiss Fr

1.2141 1.1997

Denmark Kr

7.5544 7.3678 111.4799 110.1501

Norwegian Kr

7.4450 7.2612

Polish Zloty

4.1095

4.0081

Romanian Leu 4.5392 4.3612 Russian Ruble 41.0954 40.0807 Swedish Kr

THE U.S. economy showed surprising signs of resilience in November despite the approach of the so-called fiscal cliff as consumer spending rose by the most in three years and a gauge of business investment jumped.

Consumer spending rose 0.6 per cent when adjusted for inflation, while new factory orders for capital goods outside the defence and aerospace sectors - a proxy for business spending plans - jumped 2.7 per cent, the Commerce Department said yesterday.

Economists had pinned earlier weakness in investment plans on worries lawmakers and the White House might fail to strike a deal to avoid the brunt of tax hikes and government spending cuts scheduled to begin in January.

They also worried consumers would hold back as the end-of-the-year deadline approached with both parties far apart on how to avoid the potential hit to the economy. But yesterday’s data suggested both consumers and businesses had mostly shrugged off the cliff, at least in November.

“It appears that the looming fiscal cliff hasn’t been nearly as disruptive as we had feared,” said Paul Ashworth, an economist at Capital Economics in Toronto.

Still, another report provided ample reason for caution

Yesterday’s data suggested both consumers and businesses had mostly shrugged off the ‘fiscal cliff’ as US consumer sentiment slumped in December, with households apparently rattled by on-going negotiations to lessen the fiscal tightening that could easily trigger a recession next year.

The Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan’s final index of consumer sentiment in December tumbled more than expected to 72.9 from 82.7 a month before.

US stocks fell sharply after a Republican proposal for averting the fiscal cliff was abandoned late on Thursday, eroding optimism that a deal could be reached quickly. At the same time, US government debt prices rallied and

the dollar gained ground as investors sought a safe haven.

Economists still expect economic growth to cool in the fourth quarter as companies slow the pace at which they have been re-stocking their shelves, but the data yesterday suggested consumers are offsetting some of that drag.

Consumer spending is on track to grow at a 2.2 per cent annual rate in the fourth quarter, faster than during the prior three months, said Michael Feroli, an economist at JPMorgan in New York. Forecasting firm Macroeconomic Advisers raised its forecast for fourth-quarter economic growth by four tenths of a

point to a 1.4 per cent annual rate. In the third quarter, the economy expanded at a 3.1 per cent rate.

“The economy is holding in here at the end of the year despite the concerns about the fiscal cliff,” said Gary Thayer, an economic strategist at Wells Fargo Advisors in St. Louis.

Those concerns are not going away.

In November, many analysts on Wall Street said they expected Washington would largely avert the fiscal cliff, and optimism had grown over the last week that a deal was within reach. Since Wednesday, however, negotiations

have fallen into disarray.

If Congress and the White House do not reach a deal in time, taxes will go up for all Americans beginning in January and the government will cut spending on a host of programs. Running off the fiscal cliff would slash the nation’s trillion-dollar budget deficit nearly in half in just one year.

The impact would only come gradually, but economists expect it would be enough to knock the country into recession in the first half of the year.

So far, uncertainty over the talks appears to have had only a limited impact on the economy.

GE to purchase aviation unit of Italy’s Avio for $4.3 billion

Rates

Japan Yen

By Jason Lange

8.7232 8.5078

U.S. conglomerate General Electric Co has agreed to buy the aviation business of Italy’s Avio for $4.3 billion, in a sign of confidence about the country’s underlying strength despite its deep recession.

The deal comes as Europe’s fourthbiggest economy labours to become more competitive under a reform agenda set by technocrat prime minister Mario Monti, who was due to step down yesterday before general elections seen in February.

“We are convinced that Italy will exit the crisis,” Nani Beccalli, president and chief executive of GE Europe, told reporters yesterday. “There are undoubtedly hurdles linked to red tape. But the strategic value of the deal is so big (it would offset other

issues)”, Beccalli said.

GE agreed to buy Avio from private equity fund Cinven and Italian state-controlled defence group Finmeccanica.

The move frustrated the aspirations of France’s Safran and Italy’s statebacked Strategic Fund, which had been trying over the last few months to take over Avio.

GE, whose businesses range from infrastructure technology to financial services, said Avio would boost its global supply chain capabilities as its engine production rates rise to meet growing customer demand.

Avio, which makes components for the GE Dreamliner engine used by Boeing Co, ranks among Italy’s industrial jewels and is one of the most technologically

advanced companies in its field.

William Blair & Co analyst Nick Heymann said the move, which amounts to GE buying a supplier to its jet engine program, was intended in part to protect new technologies.

“They’re trying to get more vertically integrated and have more control over critical aspects of the manufacturing process,” he said.

GE is developing composite ceramics for jet engines, a technology it also plans to use in other products such as electric turbines and equipment used in oil and gas production.

“Rather than developing (composite ceramics) and trust someone not to give it away, you want to keep it in-house,” Heymann said.

GE said Avio would help boost its global supply chain capabilities

Steve Jobs’ super yacht impounded over an unpaid Starck designer bill A SUPER yacht built for Apple Inc’s late co-founder Steve Jobs has been impounded in Amsterdam because of a dispute over an unpaid bill to designer Philippe Starck, a lawyer said yesterday.

Jobs, who died last year after making his name and fortune at Apple, never got to use the yacht - called

Venus - but had commissioned the French designer to work on the vessel, which cost more than 100 million euros to build.

A lawyer representing Starck’s company Ubik told Reuters his client had received 6 million euros out of a 9-million-euro commission for his work on the minimalist vessel

and was now seeking to recover the rest of what he was owed.

The yacht was impounded on Wednesday evening, the lawyer said, and will remain in Amsterdam port pending payment by lawyers representing Jobs’ estate.

“The project has been going since 2007 and there had been a lot of

detailed talk between Jobs and Starck,” Roelant Klaassen, a lawyer representing Ubik, said.

“These guys trusted each other, so there wasn’t a very detailed contract,” he said.

The lawyer representing Jobs’ estate could not immediately be reached for comment.

CYPRUS MAIL Saturday, December 22, 2012

13

Opinion

Government and AKEL propaganda machine goes into overdrive WHEN IT comes to distorting the facts, nobody can beat the government and AKEL. The latest misinformation campaign initiated by the party is related to the semi-government organisation (SGOs), which according to official lore, the government succeeded in resisting troika attempts to have privatised as part of the bailout. This so-called achievement was presented as a big triumph, proof of the government team’s negotiating skills.

The reality is different. In the bailout agreement it is made clear that if the loan required was deemed unsustainable, additional funds would have to be raised by the sale of organisations such as CyTA and the Electricity Authority; there is also reference to the opening up of the energy market and the ending of the EAC monopoly. In other words, these treasured state organisations are not safe from privatisation.

This did not stop the AKEL candidate Stavros Malas from claiming, at a Monday night election gathering, that DISY had plans for the privatisation of CyTA and had even decided the price - €500 million. The same myth was repeated by AKEL chief, during his budget speech in the legislature on Tuesday.

Andros Kyprianou claimed the DISY leadership was preparing the privatisation of SGOs. A week earlier, in an interview he gave to Mega TV, President Christofias took on the role of guardian angel of the SGOs, stating that if the memorandum stipulated their privatisation he would not sign it. It was the customary irresponsible stance we have come to expect from Christofias, who avoided mentioning that he had agreed to privatisation, in the event that the debt was unsustainable.

In fact privatisation is currently being discussed by the government and the troika, as the money required by Cyprus would make the public debt unsustainable.

Such details are ignored by the AKEL propaganda machinery which is quite clearly working on a plan to absolve the president of responsibility in the event that privatisation of the SGOs is raised by the troika. In such an event would Christofias carry out the threat not to sign the memorandum, or would he call a meeting of the party leaders so that the decision is taken collectively?

This may be part of a plan to avoid signing the bailout during his term, Christofias leaving office in a blaze of glory as the man who refused to bow to the troika. He would be remembered as a hero rather than as the incompetent that he actually was.

All this may seem quite outlandish, but we cannot put anything past Christofias and AKEL, who have shown a remarkable ruthlessness when it comes to misinformation and the manipulation of public opinion.

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Science fiction fact and existential risks projects “T

HE singularity” is a term invented by science-fiction writer Vernor Vinge in 1993 to describe the moment when human beings cease to be the most intelligent creatures on the planet. The threat, in his view, came not from very clever dolphins but from hyper-intelligent machines. But would they really be a threat?

We have a foundation for almost everything these days, and now we have one to worry about that. It is the Cambridge Project for Existential Risks, set up by none other than Martin Rees, Britain’s astronomer royal, and Huw Price, occupant of the Bertrand Russell Chair in Philosophy at Cambridge University.

The money comes from Jaan Tallinn, co-founder of Skype, the internet telephone company now owned by Microsoft.

It is quite likely, of course, that we will one day create a machine – a robot, if you like – that can “think” faster than we do.

Moore’s Law, which stipulates that computing power doubles every two years, is still true 47 years after it was first stated by Intel founder Gordon Moore.

Since the data-processing power of the human brain, although hard to measure, is obviously NOT doubling every two years, this is a race we are bound to lose in the end.

But that is only the start of the argument. Why should we believe that creating a machine that can process more data than we can is a bigger deal than building a machine that can move faster than we do, or lift more than we can? The “singularity” hypothesis implies (though it does not actually prove) that high dataprocessing capacity is synonymous with self-conscious intelligence.

It also usually assumes, with all the paranoia encoded in our genes by tens of millions of years of evolutionary competition for survival, that any other species or entity with the same abilities as our own will automatically be our rival, even our enemy.

This is the core assumption, for

Comment Gwynne Dyer example, in the highly successful Terminator movie franchise: on the very day that the US strategic defence computer system Skynet becomes self-aware, it tries to wipe out the human race by triggering a nuclear holocaust. It does so because it fears, probably quite correctly, that if we realise it is aware, we will feel so threatened that we will turn it off.

Human beings have been playing with these ideas and worrying about them since we first realised, more than half a century ago, that we might one day create intelligent machines. Even science-fiction writer Isaac Asimov, who believed that such machines could be made safe and remain humanity’s servants, had to invent his “Three Laws of Robotics” in 1942 to explain why they wouldn’t just take over and eliminate their creators.

The First Law was: A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm. The Second Law was: A robot must obey the orders given to it by human beings, except where such orders would conflict with the First Law. And the Third Law was: A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Laws.

If you could embed these laws deeply enough in the programming of the robots, Asimov argued, then your robots could be trusted. Yet even he was eventually driven to invent another law, sometimes called the Zeroth Law: A robot may not harm humanity, or, by inaction, allow humanity to come to harm.

The old biological rule of ruthless competition must somehow be eliminated from the behavioural repertoire of machine intelligences, but can you really

Terminator: one of the most feared robots ever to hit movie screens do that? What were once mere plot devices are now the reason for existence of a high-powered think-tank, and the answer is not exactly clear. But you can, at least, split the question into bite-sized bits.

Does a very high data-processing capacity automatically lead to “emergent” self-awareness, so that computers become independent actors with their own motivations? That might be the case. In the biological sphere, it does seem to be the case. But is it equally automatic in the electronic sphere? There is no useful evidence either way.

If self-conscious machine intelligence does emerge, will it inevitably see human beings as rivals and threats? Or is that kind of thinking just anthropomorphic?

Again, not clear.

And if intelligent machines are a potential threat, is there some way of programming them that will, like Asimov’s Laws, keep them subservient to human will?

It would have to be something so fundamental in their design that they could never get at it and re-programme it, which would probably be a fairly tall order.

That’s even before you start worrying about nanotechnology, anthropogenic climate change, big asteroid strikes, and all the other probable and possible hazards of existential proportions that we face. One way and another, the Cambridge Project for Existential Risks will have enough to keep itself busy.

Gwynne Dyer is an independent journalist whose articles are published in 45 countries

Mistletoe, wine and buying Christmas gifts online WAS A time when the postman delivered the Christmas Mail by bike: now he stumbles from his van, like Santa Claus, precariously behind a tower of wobbling parcels. For this year, is the online Christmas, in the EU alone, 232 billion worth of sales with UK, Germany and France leading the way.

It’s not just that it’s cheaper, easier and more convenient to shop online. I actually prefer making my own little grotto in the study, carols blaring, glass of mulled wine and a holly decorated screen. No driving round and round searching parking spaces, no pushing my way through crowds, no finding the perfect pyjamas only to discover they don’t have the right size.

Christmas shopping has never been easier. Of course, it helps we have an arrangement with the postman to hide pressies in the porch or leave with a neigh-

IDLE IDL LE CCHATTER HATT Lauren O’Hara beeplauren@yahoo.ie

bour.

So far, it’s been a success, mainly due to the efficiency of M and S, EBay and Amazon, all of whom have delivered, on time, as promised. Last night the supermarket shop arrived, bagged neatly in sections: store cupboard, fridge, household: leaving more time for those essentials of Christmas shopping that have to be done personally: the tree.

Oooh and what a tree: a Nordic pine from a local woods-

man, guaranteed not to drop its needles for three whole weeks, and with a long enough trunk at the base that it easily stood up in the bucket packed with earth. For the first time in many a year we will not have our own version of Pisa with a fairy looking as if she about to bungee jump from the top.

We will also not have to rumble around in the garage looking for the extension lead, swear as we thread it along the back of the sofa, untangle all the lights and have the disappointment of plugging them in to find nothing happens because one little bulb somewhere in the still knotted chain has blown.

This year, we have bought, courtesy of some company in Internetland, individual little LED candles with life like flickers that fix on to the branches: we’re sure our Nordic pine will appreciate this attempt to be

Scandinavian. Were they delivered from one of the numerous ex-derelict warehouses on continental Europe motorways, given new leases of life as distribution depots? Who knows?

The flipside to this new shopping phenomenon is death to the High Street.

In a week in which UK electrical giant Comet closed its doors, one wonders how much longer large retailers will think it worthwhile heating and staffing their city centre shops.

Clothes get far less damaged sold online, books less thumbed and the built in margins of loss from shoplifting are reduced.

How much gets returned on Boxing Day, is yet to be seen, but there’ll be an extra bonus this year to our renamed postman, with his newly bulging biceps, juggling skills and cheery smile, for Christmas depends on him....Parcelman our new superhero.

Saturday, December 22, 2012 CYPRUS MAIL

14

Showbiz

Hundreds pay respects to legendary musician Shankar Popularised Indian music in the West through work with The Beatles

Gangnam Style in line for dictionary inclusion

By Peter Schwartzstein

By Roselle Chen RAVI Shankar’s daughters, Norah Jones and Anoushka Shankar, along with the wife of late Beatle George Harrison said their final goodbyes to the Indian sitar virtuoso yesterday at a public memorial service in Encinitas, California.

The legendary musician and composer, who helped introduce the sitar to the Western world through his collaboration with The Beatles, died on December 11 in Southern California.

He was 92.

About 700 people joined Shankar’s wife, Sukanya, and family at the service held at a spiritual centre in the coastal town about 25 miles (40 km) north of San Diego.

Olivia Harrison, the widow of Beatles guitarist George Harrison, told Reuters the three-time Grammy winner who formed a musical and spiritual bond with The Beatle “expressed music at its deepest level.”

“As a person he was just sweet and seemed to know everything,” she added. “He was a true citizen of the world.”

Shankar is credited with popularising Indian music through his work with violinist Yehudi Menuhin and The Beatles begnning in the mid-1960s, inspiring George Harrison to learn the sitar and the British band to record songs like Norwegian Wood (1965) and Within You, Without You (1967).

“He completely transformed (George’s) musical sensibilities,” a tearful Harrison told the crowd. “They

Gone but not forgotten: Olivia Harrison (right), widow of the late ex-Beatle George Harrison, speaks at the public memorial service in California for Ravi Shankar, who died aged 92 last week exchanged ideas and melodies until their hearts and minds were intertwined like a double helix.”

His friendship with Harrison led him to appearances at the Monterey and Woodstock pop festivals in the late 1960s and the 1972 Concert for Bangladesh. He became one of the first Indian musicians to become a household name in the West.

His influence in classical

music, including on composer Philip Glass, was just as large. His work with Menuhin on their West Meets East albums in the 1960s and 1970s earned them a Grammy, and he wrote concertos for sitar and orchestra for both the London Symphony Orchestra and the New York Philharmonic.

“I always felt like a little crumb in his presence,” Zubin Mehta, a former music director of the New York

Philharmonic and collaborator with Shankar, said at the service.

Jazz pianist Herbie Hancock also attended the service along with Anna Karenina director Joe Wright, the husband of Shankar’s daughter Anoushka.

Shankar, who had lived in Encinitas for the past 20 years, had suffered from upper respiratory and heart issues over the past year and underwent heart-valve re-

placement surgery last week at a hospital in San Diego.

The surgery was successful but he was unable to recover.

Shankar’s final concert was on November 4 in Long Beach, California, with his Grammy-winning sitarist daughter Anoushka, who spoke giving thanks to those who came. Jones, the third Grammy-winner in the family, did not speak at the service.

It’s a Wonderful Life is top Victoria lives up to Posh nickname Christmas film with critics

By Eric Kelsey WHEN it comes to Christmas films, It’s a Wonderful Life can still melt critics’ hearts nearly 70 years after it was released, according to a survey of the best-reviewed Christmas films.

The survey, released yesterday by review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, found that the 1946 redemption story starring Jimmy Stewart edged out the 1942 Bing Crosby and Fred Astaire musical Holiday Inn and Tim Burton’s 1993 stop-motion fantasy The Nightmare Before Christmas.

World War Two drama Stalag 17, released in 1953, and 1947’s Miracle on 34th Street round out the top five.

It’s a Wonderful Life vaulted to the top spot from No.5 in 2009, when the list was last compiled, bumping The Nightmare Before Christmas from its best-reviewed status.

Films that use the holiday as a backdrop for the plot such as 1988’s Die Hard, which was No.6 on the list, and 1983’s Trading Places at No.9, were also eligible, the website said.

Rotten Tomatoes, which analyses film reviews and assigns a score based on total critical reception, applied that same formula to Christmas films for the list, Matt Atchity, the website’s editor in chief, told Reuters.

“You look at the list and it’s all the classics ... the cream floats to the top,” Atchity said, adding that the rankings were weighted to reflect the amount of reviews a film received, which could artificially boost or decline a score.

Films from the 1960s and 1970s were notably absent from the list. Atchity said studios were more focused at that time on work by big-name directors than on seasonal films.

Formerly known as Posh Spice, Victoria now lives in Los Angeles with husband David Beckham

VICTORIA Beckham lives up to her Posh Spice nickname.

The former singer gained the moniker when she was a member of the all-girl pop group in the 90s, and admits it is still relevant.

Victoria - now a fashion designer living in Los Angeles - said: “I was called Posh because I liked nice restaurants and nice clothes, and that was my character.

“I didn’t smile, even in those days. There was this very strong image.

“Sometimes I catch myself in the mirror and I’m like, ‘Oh my God, I’ve turned into that person’.”

Although she is famed for never smiling, 38-year-old Victoria - who was in Spice Girls with Scary Spice (Mel B), Sporty Spice (Mel C), Ginger Spice (Geri Halliwell and Baby Spice (Emma Bunton) - admits the group had a great time when they were together.

Speaking on new documentary The Spice Girls’ Story: Viva Forever!, she added: “The things we used to get up to!

We had a lot of fun. Even me.”

HE has the most-watched video in Youtube history, become a pop sensation with a horse-riding dance craze that has swept the world and now Korean singer Psy may cement his place in popular culture with recognition from a British dictionary.

Gangnam Style, Psy’s signature song, has been chosen along with “fiscal cliff ” and “Romneyshambles” as some of Collins Dictionary’s words of the year.

“We were looking for words that told the story of the year,” said Ian Brookes, the dictionary’s consultant editor.

“Some words are from events that have been and gone and so are not likely to stick around ... but others are probably here to stay.”

Other headline entries centred on American politics.

“Fiscal cliff ” has drawn a lot of attention as the deadline for Congress and President Obama to agree on government spending and tax plans draws nearer.

GAFFE-RIDDEN VISIT While the term “Romneyshambles” entered the British public’s consciousness after Mitt Romney’s gaffe-ridden visit to London in July in which he questioned Britain’s readiness to host the Olympics.

The inclusion of “47 percent” on the list after a leaked video showed Romney telling donors that 47 percent of Americans would definitely vote for Obama because of their dependency on the government capped off a bad year for the losing presidential candidate.

Collins received over 7,000 submissions on its online database.

Twelve words of the year one for each month - were then selected on the basis of the frequency with which they were spoken, how many places they appeared and their longevity in public discourse.

Appearing on the Collins words of the year list is no guarantee of insertion in the next dictionary.

But Gangnam Style stands a very good chance, Brookes said.

“It’s obviously a craze, so there’s the possibility it will go away. But it’s been heard by so many people that I think it’s probably earned the right to go into the dictionary.”

Other words of the year include “mummy porn” after the popularity of the Fifty Shades of Grey books, and “superstorm” after Superstorm Sandy wreaked havoc along the east coast of America in October.

CYPRUS MAIL Saturday, December 22, 2012

15

Tech

Higgs Boson tops Science’s list of 2012 breakthroughs Instagram allows users to add filters and effects to their photos, and then share them easily on the Internet

Instagram rethinks unpopular new terms INSTAGRAM, the popular photo-sharing service, has retreated from some but not all of the controversial changes in its terms of service that prompted a fierce backlash from users earlier this week.

In a blog post on Thursday, Instagram founder and CEO Kevin Systrom apologised for a failure to “communicate our intentions clearly”. The terms of service changes pertaining to advertising have been reversed, Systrom said, and restored to what they had been before the changes announced on Monday.

Instagram, which allows people to add filters and effects to photos and share them easily on the Internet, was acquired

by Facebook earlier this year for $715 million.

Some top users of Instagram, including National Geographic magazine, said they would stop using the service after the new rules were announced.

Language that had appeared to allow Instagram advertisers to display user photos without compensation have been removed from updated terms of service posted on Thursday.

The updated terms also do not appear to contain a controversial provision which had stated that if a child under the age of 18 used the service, it implied his or her parent had tacitly agreed to Instagram’s terms.

However, the new terms still contain a mandatory arbitration clause, which is not included in terms of service for other leading social media companies like Twitter, Google, YouTube or even Facebook itself. That immunizes Instagram from many forms of liability, according to legal experts.

Experts said Instagram had been aggressive in asserting its rights to user information and inviting any who did not agree to delete their accounts.

The updated terms still say anyone who accesses Instagram agrees to be bound by the new terms, slated to go into effect on January 19.

Capture of sub-atomic particle year’s high point

By John von Radowitz THE capture of the most wanted sub-atomic particle in physics was on Thursday named Science journal’s Breakthrough of the Year.

Scientists had been chasing the Higgs boson, nicknamed the “God particle” for more than four decades.

In July the team from the European nuclear research facility at Cern in Geneva announced the detection of a particle that fitted the description of the elusive Higgs.

The boson is hypothesised to give matter mass via an associated “Higgs field” that permeates space. Without the property of mass, the universe we live in could not exist.

Scientists used the world’s biggest atom smashing machine, the £2.6-billion Large Hadron Collider on the SwissFrench border, to track down the missing particle.

Finding the Higgs topped the list of most important discoveries of 2012 released on Thursday by Science, one of the world’s most prestigious scientific journals.

The particle was first proposed by a British physicist Professor Peter Higgs almost 50 years ago when he was a 34year-old scientist working at the University of Edinburgh.

Scientists used the £2.6-billion Large Hadron Collider on the Swiss-French border to track down the missing particle But until this year, no-one had been able to prove that his theory was right.

Science news correspondent Adrian Cho, who wrote about the discovery in the journal’s latest issue, said: “Mass must somehow emerge from interactions of the otherwise mass-less particles themselves. that’s where the Higgs comes in.

“Just as an electric field consists of particles called photons, the Higgs field consists of Higgs bosons woven into the vacuum. Physicists have now blasted them out of the

vacuum and into brief existence.”

Science also lists nine other pioneering achievements from 2012, including: The Denisovan Genome: Scientists sequenced the DNA blueprint of the Denisovans, an extinct species of human that lived alongside Neanderthals and the ancestors of people living today.

Making eggs from stem cells: Japanese researchers showed that embryonic stem cells from mice could be coaxed into becoming viable egg cells.

App tracks Santa on Christmas eve CHILDREN eager to track Santa Claus on his annual yuletide journey to homes across the world can download a new mobile app from the North American Aerospace Defence Command (NORAD).

The new app for Windows 8, called NORAD Tracks Santa, is part of a 57-year-long holiday tradition at NORAD of tracking Santa. It will allow children to keep up with him on their mobile devices and joins similar apps for iOS, Android and web apps.

“Every December 24th since 1955, we have been telling kids exactly where Santa is so that children all over the world can make sure that they’re in bed on time so that Santa will deliver their presents,” explained Stacey Knott of NORAD, a US-Canadian military organisation based in Colorado.

In addition to tracking Santa’s location on Christmas Eve, the app also shows cameos from his route across major landmarks like the Eiffel Tower and the Great Wall of China.

The app is free and shows highlights of Santa’s ‘route’ During the countdown to the big night, children can also use the apps to play games and watch videos.

NORAD’s involvement dates back to a 1955 advertisement in a local Sears, Roebuck & Co department store asking children to call Santa directly.

But the phone number in the ad contained a typo.

Instead of reaching Santa’s

private phone, the children gained direct access to the Continental Air Defence Command, NORAD’s predecessor.

“Any call that came though on this line was typically the chairman, or the secretary of defence, or even the president,” Knott said.

Colonel Harry Shoup was working that Christmas Eve when the first child called.

“This little tiny girl’s voice said, ‘Is this Santa?’” Knott explained. “[Colonel Shoup] looked around because he thought someone was playing a joke on him, but then he talked to the girl’s mom and realised what had happened.”

Shoup instructed his staff to check the radar for signs of Santa and relayed the information to the children, and the tradition was born.

In addition to the free app which is available worldwide, children can visit www.noradsanta.org, call 1-877-HINORAD, or email noradtrackssanta@outlook.com on Christmas Eve to get information on Santa’s location.

Curiosity’s landing system: Mission engineers at the American space agency NASA safely and precisely placed the Curiosity rover on the surface of Mars. They used a “sky crane” that dropped the 3.3-tonne rover to the surface from a hovering platform on three cables.

X-ray laser deciphering of protein structure: Researchers used an X-ray laser, which shines a billion times brighter than traditional synchrotron sources, to determine the structure of an enzyme required by the parasite

that causes African sleeping sickness. The advance demonstrated the potential of X-ray lasers to decipher proteins that conventional X-ray sources cannot.

Brain-machine interfaces: Scientists showed that paralysed human patients could move a mechanical arm with their minds and perform complex movements in three dimensions. The technology is still experimental, and costly, but the team is hopeful that one day it will help patients paralysed by strokes, spinal injuries and other conditions.

THIS WEEK IN HISTORY

Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs cost $1.5m to create

Full-length animated film In 1937, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Walt Disney’s first full-length (83 minutes), animated film opened in Los Angeles. Using the story adapted from Brothers Grimms’ Fairy Tales, it was the first commercially successful film of its kind.

This pioneering film made use of the multi-plane camera to achieve an effect of depth, introduced human characters modelled on live actors, and used larger painted cells. After two years and a then-astronomical $1.5 million to create, it was released for its premiere during Christmas of 1937.

CYPRUS MAIL Saturd

16

Lifestyle May yfair’s most w Good enough to drink: Chichvarkin in Hedonism

Chichvarkin at a protest against anti Kremlin policies in London last year

How does a Russian oligarch on the run with a taste for fruity New World plonk become London’s premier wine dealer?

John Arlidge meets Yevgeny Chichvarkin

T

O SUCCEED in business you need luck.

Yevgeny Chichvarkin has had dollops of it, most of it bad. He has been persecuted by the Russian authorities and was forced to flee to London, hiding from the Moscow police in the back of a car. Once he arrived, he spent a fortune on lawyers resisting extradition and fighting what he insists are trumped-up kidnapping charges.

But that was then. Today, he stands at the door of Hedonism. It’s not a lap-dancing bar; it is, he says, “the finest wine shop in London”.

The thing is, he’s right. The British capital’s big vintners, Berry Bros & Rudd and Justerini & Brooks - both a cork’s throw away on St James’ and El Vino on Fleet Street may have nifty cellars and be so old that they have the paperwork to prove Napoleon was a customer, but they are not really shops. They are merchants’ houses with bars and restaurants attached.

Hedonism on Davies Street, which opened four months ago, is the only store devoted to the best wines and spirits in the world, all sold in the kind of multimillion-pound designer space that is more Moschino than Majestic.

Walking across Berkeley Square past the Rolls-Royce and Bentley showrooms, the latest designer shops, new members-only clubs and

spiffy restaurants, you soon begin to wonder why it has taken anyone so long to open a place like Hedonism. “Mayfair is the perfect terroir for this business,” Chichvarkin grins.

But he is an unlikely grape pedlar.

The 38-year-old started drinking vodka in his late teens because “Russian wine is terrible”. He insists: “My taste in wine is awful. I like big bursting fruit explosions - Shiraz, Grenache. My favourite wine is American, not from Burgundy. I don’t drink champagne.” It’s not his fault. He’s a technophile, not an oenophile.

Fourteen years ago he founded Evroset, Russia’s biggest mobile phone company, and in the early days of wild east capitalism made hundreds of millions of roubles. At its height, Evroset had more than 5,000 shops in Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, Moldova, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Armenia and Azerbaijan. But four years ago everything changed in a heartbeat. “I went out one morning the boss of a large mobile phone company and ended up in exile in London.”

Chichvarkin had been under investigation for weeks.

The police alleged he had kidnapped a truck driver because he believed the driver had stolen a $1m consignment of the latest mobile phones. Prosecutors wrote to

him asking him to appear for interview. He refused. He was innocent, he said. Three days before Christmas Day, he left home in his car to go to work and noticed he was being tailed by the police. That meant one thing. “They were going to arrest me and, after that, I knew it would be very bad,” he recalls. “Things in Russia don’t happen the way things do in England.”

He managed to give the cops the slip, met up with a colleague and persuaded him to drive him straight to Domodedovo, Moscow’s main airport. Luckily, he was carrying his passport and already had a British visa. “I was so scared I lay face down on the back seat, so no police could see me.” At the airport, he bought a ticket for the first flight to London and was relieved to find immigration did not stop him leaving.

“They were not expecting me to go just like that,” he says.

His wife Antonina and their two children, then under ten, followed him the next morning. The family have been in London ever since. They live near Godalming in Surrey.

Chichvarkin’s employee and co-accused, Boris Levin, was not so fortunate. He was arrested and spent years in prison before being released when a jury dismissed all the charges against both men.

Chichvarkin was tried in absentia. He says he was targeted by the Russian authorities

because he spoke out against government policies on business and tax.

Chichvarkin spent his first years in his new home selling Evroset for $400m, resisting extradition and fighting to prove his innocence. Once he had done that, he, like all entrepreneurs, got bored.

Projects came and went.

Like many tortured souls, he found his salvation at the bottom of a bottle - a £170 2001 Roda Cirsion to be precise. Chichvarkin wanted to share the Rioja with Antonina. So he telephoned Justerini & Brooks, Selfridges, Harrods, Harvey Nichols and just about anyone else he could think of. “They all had the same answer. No. The best any of them could do was to get it to me in two weeks. I was amazed. I knew then I had my business. Upscale

wine with luxury service.”

He knew a bit about highend retail: he used to manage the Vertu luxury phone stores in Russia. But, lacking the right palate, he needed help.

It came in the form of the aptly named Alistair Viner.

Chichvarkin persuaded him to leave his post as chief wine buyer for Harrods by handing him a more or less unlimited budget to buy the best booze in the world.

Two years and millions of air miles later, Viner has not disappointed.

Hedonism stocks more vintages of the big names than a connoisseur could ever want - 4,500 wines and 1,500 spirits. There are walls of rare Krug and Dom Pérignon champagnes, some signed by family members. A magnum of 1959 Dom Pérignon rosé, the first ever made, can be yours for £19,954. Lov-

ers of Romanée-Conti and La Tâche could spend half a day in the Burgundy section, and most of a fortune. There are 21 and 23 vintages of each. A 2005 Romanée-Conti

With big names and critics and assorte dismissed Chichva Russian who has br than class’ complete magnum set costs £101,709.

There are 15 rare vintages of Montrachet. Latour goes back to 1961, Lafite to 1949

ay, December 22, 2012

17 Television Crossword Sport

26-27 28 29-32

wanted Chateau MoutonRothschild vertical collection 1945-2004

Luxury: Hedonism’s main showroom

and Pétrus to 1945. Pride of place, however, goes to the amber-coloured wall of 85 bottles of Château d’Yquem, the world’s most celebrated dessert wine, the earliest an

even bigger prices, d wine snobs have rkin as just another rought a ‘more flash style to W1 1811. Yes, you read that right.

The bottle really is 201 years old. The price? £98,700. There are rare sherries, Cognacs, whiskies, eaux de vie, and

rums. A bottle of Glenfiddich 1955 Janet Sheed Roberts, bottle number one of eight, costs £123,000.

With big names and even bigger prices, critics and assorted wine snobs have dismissed Chichvarkin as just another Russian who has brought a “more flash than class” style to W1. He’s rich, all right, and not afraid to spend.

The shop alone cost £2m – “crazy expenditure. I stress when I think about it.” He has hired 15 wine experts who can speak dozens of languages between them. But Hedonism is not flashy. Think matt, not gloss, woods. Copper, not chrome, lights. Ben Murray, one of the wine specialists, insists he is “as happy putting together a case of whites and reds under £20 a bottle as I am selling the wines we keep under lock and key”.

Chichvarkin isn’t flash either.

In fact, wearing his rumpled clothes, sporting a straggly beard and mullet haircut, and speaking so softly he’s almost whispering, he seems more like a Shoreditch artist than a cocksure gazillionaire. Hedonism “is not an oligarch’s plaything,” he insists. But you can have a great time browsing – or bottle fondling as it’s known. And you can taste up to 40 vintages from a special cabinet that keeps opened bottles fresh for up to three weeks “although no bottle lasts that long”, Chichvarkin jokes. Prices for a 25cl shot – the maximum Hedonism’s licence permits – vary from 90p for Château Saperavi from Georgia to £21 for Château d’Yquem 1988.

Chichvarkin insists the venture “will break even by the end of 2015” and has hired a

hard-as-nails Russian CEO, Tatiana Fokina, who used to run a modern art gallery in St Petersburg, to make sure it does. If that happens, what’s next? “Hedonism could work in New York or Shanghai. Only Moscow is off limits. I can’t go back there.”

Chichvarkin’s father still lives in Russia but visits his

son in London. Chichvarkin says he prefers a quiet family life to the billionaire boys’ club antics of many Russians in London. Friends confirm that he rarely socialises in town, except for business. “He spends most of his time working and then goes home to Surrey,” says one. His one big indulgence is polo.

Mobile phones or Côtes du Rhône, what’s better? He smiles. “To earn good money, it’s phones. But for balance, for what I really like to do, it’s wine.” Now all the Willy Wonka of wine has to do is drink some more, so he can learn to appreciate the grands crus he sells as much as those who buy them.

Saturday, December 22, 2012 CYPRUS MAIL

18

What’s on

films

(K) All Audiences (12/15/18) No admittance to Under-12s/ 15s/ 18s (N/A) Not Available

Times are subject to change, so check first with cinemas before you head out

NICOSIA Life of Pi (K) K-Cineplex (Screen 4) at 5.30, 7.50 and 10.15pm, weekends also at 3.10pm; K-Cineplex, Mall of Cyprus (Screen 4) at 5.30, 7.50 and 10.15pm, weekends also at 11.30am and 3.10pm.

Tel: 7777-8383 Arbitrage (12) K-Cineplex (Screen 3) at 7.50 and 10.20pm; K-Cineplex, Mall of Cyprus (Screen 3) at 7.50 and 10.20pm. Tel: 7777-8383 The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (12) K-Cineplex (Screen 1) at 7 and 10.15pm; K-Cineplex (Screen 2) at 5.05 and 8.15pm; K-Cineplex, Mall of Cyprus (Screen 1) at 7 and 10.15pm; K-Cineplex, Mall of Cyprus (Screen 2) at 5.05 and 8.15pm, weekends also at 11.30am. Tel: 7777-8383 Seven Psychopaths (18) K-Cineplex (Screen 6) at 10.20pm; K-Cineplex, Mall of Cyprus (Screen 5) at 10.20pm.

Tel: 7777-8383 Hotel Transylvania (K) K-Cineplex (Screen 1) (in Greek, in 3D) at 5.10pm (till Monday), weekends also at 3.20pm; KCineplex, Mall of Cyprus (Screen 1) (in Greek, in 3D) at 5.10pm (till Monday), weekends also at 11.30am, 1.30pm and 3.20pm. Tel: 7777-8383

Lawless (15) K-Cineplex (Screen 6) at 7.50pm. Tel: 7777-8383 Rise of the Guardians (K) K-Cineplex (Screen 3) (in Greek, in 2D) at 5.30pm (till Monday), weekends also at 3.25pm; KCineplex (Screen 1) (in Greek, in 2D) at 5.05pm (from Tuesday); K-Cineplex (Screen 5) (in English, in 2D) at 5.30pm, weekends also at 3.25pm; K-Cineplex, Mall of Cyprus (Screen 3) (in Greek, in 2D) at 5.30pm (till Monday), weekends also at 11.20am, 1.15pm and 3.10pm; K-Cineplex, Mall of Cyprus (Screen 1) (in Greek, in 2D) at 5.05pm (from Tuesday); K-Cineplex, Mall of Cyprus (Screen 5) (in English, in 2D) at 5.30pm, weekends also at 11.20am, 1.20pm and 3.25pm.

Tel: 7777-8383 The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn, Part 2 (12) K-Cineplex (Screen 5) at 5.35, 7.45 and 10.15pm, weekends also at 3.20pm; K-Cineplex, Mall of Cyprus (Screen 5) at 7.45pm.

Tel: 7777-8383

LIMASSOL Life of Pi (K) Rio 1 at 5.30, 8 and weeken 10.15pm, weekends Te also at 3pm. Tel: 25-871410; K(Scre 4) Cineplex (Screen a at 5.30, 7.50 and week 10.15pm, week3.10 ends also at 3.10pm.

Tel: 7777-8383

CINEMA WEBSITES: K-Cineplex: http://kcineplex.com, Friends of the Cinema Society: http://www.ofk.org.cy

Arbitrage (12) Rio 2 at 10.50pm; Rio 3 at 8pm, from Tuesday at 8.10pm. Tel: 25-871410; K-Cineplex (Screen 3) at 7.50 and 10.20pm. Tel: 7777-8383 Zarafa (K) Rio 2 (in Greek) at 3pm (weekends only), 4.30pm (from tomorrow) and 6pm. Tel: 25-871410 The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (12) Rio 2 at 7.45pm; Rio 3, till Monday at 10pm, from Tuesday at 10.10pm. Tel: 25-871410; K-Cineplex (Screen 1) at 7 and 10.15pm; K-Cineplex (Screen 2) at 5.05 and 8.15pm. Tel: 7777-8383 Seven Psychopaths (18) Rio 4, weekends at 8.20 and 10.10pm, Monday at 7.45 and 10pm, from Tuesday at 8.10 and 10.10pm. Tel: 25-871410 Shadow Dancer (12) Rio 6 at 10.10pm. Tel: 25-871410

Rise of the Guardians (K) Rio 4 (in English, in 2D), till Monday at 3pm (weekends only), 4.50 and 6.35pm, from Tuesday at 4.30 and 6.20pm; Rio 3 (in Greek, in 3D), weekends at 2.50pm only. Tel: 25-871410; K-Cineplex (Screen 3) (in Greek, in 2D) at 5.30pm (till Monday), weekends also at 3.25pm; K-Cineplex (Screen 1) (in Greek, in 2D) at 5.30pm (from Tuesday); K-Cineplex (Screen 5) (in English, in 2D) at 5.30pm, weekends also at 3.25pm. Tel: 7777-8383 The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn, Part 2 (12) Rio 5 at 5.30pm (from tomorrow) and 7.45pm. Tel: 25-871410; K-Cineplex (Screen 5) at 7.45 and 10.15pm. Tel: 7777-8383 Taken 2 (12) Rio 6 at 5.40 and 7.45pm. Tel: 25-871410

LARNACA

Hotel Transylvania (K) Rio 3 (in Greek, in 3D), till Monday at 4.30 and 6pm (weekends at 6.15pm). Tel: 25-871410; K-Cineplex (Screen 1) (in Greek, in 3D) at 5.10pm (till Monday), weekends also at 3.20pm. Tel: 7777-8383

Life of Pi (K) K-Cineplex (Screen 4) at 5.30, 7.50 and 10.15pm, weekends also at 3.10pm. Tel: 7777-8383

Lawless (15) Rio 5 at 10.05pm. Tel: 25-871410

Hotel Transylvania (K) K-Cineplex (Screen 1) (in Greek, in 3D) at 5.10pm (till Monday), weekends also at 3.20pm. Tel: 7777-8383

Arbitrage (12) K-Cineplex (Screen 3) at 7.50 and 10.20pm. Tel: 7777-8383

Music Alice in Dreamland The Cyprus Opera Organisation presents musical inspired by novel of Lewis Caroll. December 22. Larnaca Municipal Theatre. €10/5 kids 8 years and under. In Greek. Tel: 24-665795 Trio Tekke Local group live in concert. December 22. WhereHaus 612, 5 M5 Michael Kousoulide, Pallouriotissa Industrial Area, Nicosia. 9pm. €10.

Tel: 99-188248 Above and Beyond DJ trio arriving in Cyprus for a special Christmas performance. December 22. Pavilion, Lakatameia. 9.30pm. €22. Tickets available Nicosia: Octagono Kiosk, Café Caprice and The Mall Kiosk. Limassol: Musical Paradise, Brent Cross – Anexartisias.

Larnaca: Amalfi Café. Paphos: Calypso Music Store. Tel: 22-322222

Theatre A Play about... Trash The theatre group Point To, in collaboration with Scarabeo Lounge Bar, presents the comedy directed by Evagelia Onoufriou. December 22 & 29 and 5, 12, 19, 26 January 2013.

Scarabeo Bar, 4 Nikokreontos Street, Nicosia. 9.30pm. €10. In Greek. Tel: 99-935777/99-740773

Gourouniasmata Silver Spotlight presents the new musical for children by Katerina Christofidou and Aigli Spyridaki. December 22-23 at 11am & December 26-28 at 4pm. December 29-30 at 11am and 4pm. Melina Merkouri Hall, Famagusta Gate, old Nicosia. €10. In Greek. Tel: 97-876760

Other Events Rare Vinyl Records and Books Choose a unique gift for the season and enjoy drinks and homemade baking from the Gaffiero House Kitchen. December 22. Gaffiero House, 3 Xanthis Xenierou, Nicosia.

11am-8pm. Tel: 22-101179/22665155

Tomorrow Other Events Christmas Bazaar Handicrafts, jewellery, leather goods, books, vintage clothes, movie projections, music, food, storytelling with two actors and much more. December 23. To Practoreio 19 Nikitara Street, Agioi Omologites, Nicosia.

12pm-8pm. Free. Tel: 99-849598. eidekanou@gmail.com

Monday Music Christmas Eve with Eva Kyriakou Music from the 80s, 90s and todays with Eva Kyriakou live and Dj Chris Angelo on decks. December 24.

Retro Club, 18 Omirou Street, Nicosia. 11pm. Tel: 96-888508 Christmas Eve Party Kaela Santosh as Tina Turner plus stand up comic and DJ Lukas. December 24. Pentaras Hall, Coral Bay Road, Paphos. 7.30pm. €30 including international buffet. Reservations essential - Tel: 99-832538. Tickets must be purchased in advance at Pentaras or by phone

Ongoing Other Events 7 films: Harun Farocki A selection of screenings by legendary German filmmaker, critic and teacher followed by discussion and talk with the artist. Within the framework of the opening ceremony of a new contemporary art centre. Until February 15. Point Centre for Contemporary Art Megaron Hadjisavva, 2 Evagorou Street, Nicosia. Every Wednesday through Sunday from 11am-5pm. Tel: 22-662053. Email: info@pointcentreforcontemporaryart.com

Seven Psychopaths (18) K-Cineplex (Screen 6) at 10.20pm. Tel: 7777-8383 Lawless (15) K-Cineplex (Screen 6) at 7.50pm. Tel: 7777-8383 Rise of the Guardians (K) K-Cineplex (Screen 3) (in Greek, in 2D) at 5.30pm (till Monday), weekends also at 3.25pm; KCineplex (Screen 1) (in Greek, in 2D) at 5.05pm (from Tuesday); K-Cineplex (Screen 5) (in English, in 2D) at 5.30pm, weekends also at 3.25pm. Tel: 7777-8383 The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn, Part 2 (12) K-Cineplex (Screen 5) at 5.35, 7.45 and 10.15pm, weekends also at 3.20pm. Tel: 7777-8383

PAPHOS Life of Pi (K) Rio 3 at 5.30pm, weekends also at 3pm; Rio 7 at 7.30pm; Rio 1 at 10.30pm. Tel: 26-207000 The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (12) Rio 1 at 7.30pm, weekends also at 11am and 4pm; Rio 6, weekdays only at 5.30pm; Rio 7 at 9.45pm. Tel: 26-207000

Zarafa (K) Rio 5 (in Greek) at 11am, 3, 4.45 and 6.30pm, from Tuesday at 5 and 6.30pm. Tel: 26-207000 Arbitrage (12) Rio 6 at 8.30 and 10.30pm. Tel: 26-207000 Seven Psychopaths (18) Rio 4 at 7.30 and 9.45pm. Tel: 26-207000 Hotel Transylvania (K) Rio 1 (in Greek, in 3D), weekdays only at 5.30pm; Rio 6 (in Greek, in 3D), till Monday at 11am, 2.40, 4.30 and 6.20pm.

Tel: 26-207000 Shadow Dancer Rio 5 at 7.30 and 9.45pm, from tomorrow at 8 and 10pm. Tel: 26-207000 Rise of the Guardians (K) Rio 4 (in English, in 2D) at 5.30pm, weekends also at 11am and 3.30pm; Rio 7 (in Greek, in 3D), till Monday at 11am, 3.30 and 5.30pm. Tel: 26-207000 The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn, Part 2 (12) Rio 3 at 7.45pm. Tel: 26-207000 Taken 2 (12) Rio 3 at 10pm. Tel: 26-207000 Skyfall (12) Rio 2 at 5 and 7.30pm, from Tuesday also at 10pm. Tel: 26-207000

listings

Seven Psychopaths

Today

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (12) K-Cineplex (Screen 1) at 7 and 10.15pm; K-Cineplex (Screen 2) at 5.05 and 8.15pm. Tel: 7777-8383

First International Christmas Fair Includes a wide range of events and concerts for families and children.

December 14-Janaury 1. Christmas Fair, Sea Road, Between McDonalds and Pascucci Café, Yermasoyia. All day event. Tel: 97-745594 Bidoun Library A mobile library of books, magazines and other printed matter about the Middle East. Within the framework of the opening ceremony of a new contemporary art centre. Until February 15. Point Centre for Contemporary Art Megaron Hadjisavva, 2 Evagorou Street, Nicosia.

Tel: 22-662053

Theatre 11:16 Anemona Theatre presents a mystery

by C. G. Wilson. Until December 23. Anemona Theatre, 7 Archagelou Street, Latsia, Nicosia. Every Friday and Saturday at 8.30pm and Sunday at 8pm. In Greek. €10. Tel: 22-573031 Shakespeare in an Hour Pirasmos Productions presents theatrical comedy. Until December 23. Pantheon Art Cinema, 29 Diagorou Street, Nicosia. Thursday through Sunday at 8.30pm. In Greek. Tel: 70-001910 Noah’s Family A theatrical play for children written

by Xenia Kalogeropoulou and Thomas Moschopoulos. Until December 23. THOC New Theatre Building, 9 Gregori Afxentiou, Nicosia. Every Sunday at 10.30am. In Greek. Tel: 22-864300

The Magic Flute The Children’s Stage of Satiriko Theatre presents play adapted and directed by Thanasis Theologis. Until December 23. Vladimiros Kafkarides Cultural Centre, 11-15 Vladimiros Kafkarides Street, Aglantzia, Nicosia.

Every Sunday at 10.30am. €10. In Greek. Tel: 22-312940/22-421609 Misery Stephen King’s psychological thriller staged by Satiriko Theatre. Every Friday and Saturday. Until December 29. Vladimiros Kafkarides Cultural Centre, 11-15 Vladimiros Kafkarides Street, Aglantzia. Every Friday at 8.30pm and Saturday at 11pm. In Greek. Tel: 22-312940/22-421609. www.satiriko.com Just Broken Up Act Theatre presents play by Vassilis Myrianthopoulos & Vangelis Hatzinikolaou. Cyprus Dialect Adaptation

by Christiana Artemiou. Until January 6. Latsia Municipal Theatre, 57 Yiannos Kranidiotis Avenue, Nicosia. On specific days at 8.30pm and 6pm on Sundays. €20. Tel: 77-777181 The Elephant Man Theatro Ena presents a play by Bernard Pomerance, translated and directed by Andreas Christodoulides.

Until January 27. Theatro Ena, 4 Athinas Avenue, Nicosia. Every Friday through Sunday at 8.30pm. In Greek. €15/12. Tel: 22-348203

For a full guide to the week’s events and regular meetings, make sure you get a copy of the Sunday Mail

Social Security THOC presents a play by Andrew Bergman. Until January 27. THOC New Theatre Building, 9 Gregori Afxentiou, Nicosia. Friday through Sunday. Friday & Sunday at 8.30pm, Saturday at 6pm and 8.30pm. Tel: 77-772717/22-864300

Exhibitions Giorgos Kostonis Solo painting exhibition. Until December 22. Intercollege, 52 Famagusta Avenue, Larnaca Road. MondayFriday: 10am-7pm. Tel: 24-747500 Dialogues Group exhibition by the academic staff and associates of Aigaia School of Art and Design. Until December 22. Aigaia School of Art and Design, 81 Agion Omologiton Avenue, Nicosia. MondayFriday: 9am-1pm & 4pm-8pm. Saturday: 4pm-8pm. Tel: 22-445757 Angel of Christmas Solo painting exhibition by Andreas Karayian. Until December 22.

Apocalypse Gallery, 30 Chytron Street, Nicosia. Monday- Friday: 10.30am-1pm and 5pm-8pm. Saturday: 10.30am-1pm. Tel: 22-766655 Collector’s Room Solo drawing and sculpture exhibition by Japanese artist Chiaki Kamikawa. Until December 22. Chiaki Kamikawa Contemporary Art, Solonos 10, Paphos T. Tuesday- Friday: 10am-1pm and 4pm-6pm. Saturday: 10am-1pm. Tel: 99-311225. www.ckamikawa.com

CYPRUS MAIL Saturday, December 22, 2012

19 To have your event included for FREE in our listings, send details to: Arts Editor, Cyprus Mail, PO Box 21144, Nicosia. Fax: 22-676385.

Email: whatson@cyprus-mail.com Please send your information as early as possible. Include full details, a contact number and good quality photos

When pop, opera & musicals meet ANDREW OLIVER, the Paphos-based music impresario, is the mastermind behind a new two-hour show of fusion music which will be presented across yp y, Cyprus in January, starring pianist Andrew and BritDouble act: ish soprano Tina Andrew Chester.

Oliver This is not only and Tina a ‘first’ for the Chester island, where concerts have historically fallen into clear old-

fashioned divisions, classical and popular: it is also the most comprehensive.

Oliver remarked: “The tour currently has 20 confirmed dates/venues which, to my knowledge in the 10 years I’ve been here, has never been done. It’s presented by Music in the Mountains, which was formed some years back to bring quality music to people right where they live. Fittingly, the show will make its début at the traditional, unspoiled mountain village of Vouni on Friday January 4, with a performance at the charming Takis Family Tavern.

Here, after the concert, our hosts, Takis, Androulla and family, will serve an opening night feast using wonderful local produce prepared the traditional Cypriot way”.

The tour then goes higher to another mountain village, Pelendri, for a festive Epiphany Sunday barbeque lunch at the Symposio Tavern on January 6. A spokesman confirmed: “Most of our venues are just small places and the concert will play to audiences of 30 to 60. It’s been interesting to note that the smaller venues see this as a marvellous opportunity to expand

their business and draw in new customers.”

There are, of course, larger events in Limassol, Larnaca and Paphos but this is not the main focus of Music in the Mountains which is already signed up for concerts in 15 villages including Letymbou, Omodos, Lania and Lofou, plus the tiny mountain hideaway of Sylikou where the very first Music in the Mountains concert was held in 2008.

Fusion music, sometimes called ‘cross-over’, combines classical and operatic songs and tunes from musical shows and even pop anthems.

Of the all artists using this musical medium, the most famous are the three tenors, Domingo, Carreras and Pavarotti, whose 1994 CD The Three Tenors in Concert became the bestselling classical album of all time. The current darlings of cross-over music are Jonathan Antoine and Charlotte Jaconelli, known collectively as Jonathan and Charlotte, a duo from

Essex, UK. They finished as runnersup in the sixth series of Britain’s Got Talent in 2012; despite not winning, they were offered a £1million record deal by Simon Cowell on his label, Syco. Their album Together reached #5 in the UK Album Charts before being released in the USA and Canada in October.

Oliver is possibly best known on the island for his Elton John Tribute act but is returning to his classical roots for ‘Fusion’, accompanying Tina in a unique and intimate blend of quality music. It offers a fine two-hour programme covering operatic arias and classical songs in several languages, to musical theatre numbers like Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Phantom, as well as popular duets like Streisand’s ‘You Don’t Bring Me Flowers’.

From January 4, each venue will be offering a competitively priced package of concert and cocktails, concert with dinner or concert with wine-tasting.

Fusion Music Schedule Fusion Music: Pop meets opera meets show-tunes with Tina Chester: Soprano and Andrew Oliver: Piano January 4: Vouni Takis Family Tavern, Limassol. Concert 7pm, dinner 9pm. €20 inc. dinner. Reservations - Tel: 25943631 January 6: Pelendri Symposio Tavern, Limassol. Concert 12 noon, lunch 2pm. €27 inc. lunch and first drink. Reservations - Tel: 99-404348 January 8: Kathikas Yiannis Tavern. Concert 7pm, dinner 9pm. €20 inc. dinner.

Reservations - Tel: 26-633353 January 9: Erimi Michael’s Tavern. Concert 7pm, dinner 9pm. €18 inc. dinner.

Reservations - Tel: 25-934104 January 10: Letymbou Tavern. Concert 7pm, dinner 9pm. €23 inc. dinner. Reservations - Tel: 26-642614 January 12: Omodos Tavern. Concert 7pm, dinner 9pm. €20 inc. dinner. Reservations - Tel: 25-421493 January 13: Lania Pliades Art Cafe. Concert 3pm. €12. Coffee and cake available.

Tickets & Information - Tel: 99-832538 January 14: Kouklia Laledes. Concert 7pm, dinner 9pm. €25 inc. dinner. Reservations - Tel: 26-432233 January 16: Pissouri Yialos Restaurant.

FUSION 2 with special guest Ross Neil.

Concert 7pm, dinner 9pm. €20 inc. dinner. B & B rooms available. Reservations - Tel: 99-473141 January 17: Latchi Y & P Hotel. Concert

7pm, dinner 9pm. €20 inc. dinner. B & B rooms available. Reservations - Tel: 26-321411 January 18: Larnaca Pyla Village Tavern. FUSION 2 with special guest Ross Neil. Dinner 7pm, concert 9pm. €20 inc. dinner. Reservations – Tel: 99-975863/99070168 January 19: Lofou Wine Cellar. Concert 7pm, dinner 9pm. €25 inc. dinner and a glass of wine.

B & B rooms available. Reservations – Tel: 25-470202 January 24: Konia Old Kamaroudi Tavern.

Concert 8pm. €10. Tickets & information - Tel: 99-832538. Meals available in restaurant. Reservations - Tel: 26-942044 January 25: 7pm - Souni Lenia’s Tavern.

Concert 7pm, dinner 9pm. €16 inc. dinner. Reservations - Tel: 25-717117 January 26: Limassol Heritage School.

Concert 8.30pm. €10.Reservations - Tel: 25-367018 January 28: Anarita Olivio Restaurant.

Concert 7pm, dinner 9pm. €27 inc. dinner. Reservations - Tel: 26-423385 January 30: Paphos Pentaras Hall. FUSION GALA with Tina Chester: soprano, Ross Neil: baritone, Lesley Locke: violin, Tommy Locke: guitar, Andrew Oliver: piano and Doros Zesimos: cello. Concert 8.30pm. €15 inc. welcome drink. Tickets & Information Meals available in the restaurant - Tel: 26-271130 February 1: Sylikou Tavern. Concert 7pm, dinner 9pm. €22 inc. dinner. Reservations - Tel: 24-70056

For a full listing of the day’s events, see facing page

Saturday, December 22, 2012 CYPRUS MAIL

20

Television CYBC 1 07.15

Oikogeneia Solomou (rpt) Local series with events unfolding in a Cypriot village before and after the Turkish invasion of 1974.

08.00

07.00 08.00

Paizoume Kypriaka

17.15

New season of local game show, asking questions having to do with Cypriot dialect.

13.00 14.00 14.30

16.30

Vimmata Stin Ammo (rpt) Two episodes of local period drama, based on true events.

18.00 18.15

News Patates Antinahtes (rpt) Local satirical show, using comedy sketches and embarrassing TV clips to skewer local politicians.

19.30 20.00 21.30

23.30 23.45

18.30

FILM: Hannah Montana & Miley Cyrus - Best of Both World’s Concert Tour

18.50 19.00 19.10 21.00

06.20 06.50 07.20 07.50 08.20 09.10 10.20 11.10 12.00 12.45 14.20 16.00

News In English New In Turkish NRG Zone Weekend FILM: Scrooged

18.30 20.20 21.30 22.20

FILM: The Ladies Man A jilted goof turns against women, then gets a job in a boardinghouse full of them.

Comedy, starring Jerry Lewis and Helen Traubel. 1961.

00.10 00.25 02.20

07.40 09.40 10.30 11.20 12.10 13.10 14.00 17.00 18.00 18.20 20.15 21.15 22.20

News In English & News In Turkish Me Kali Parea (rpt) Euronews

00.15 00.20 00.30 01.40

02.40 03.50 04.40

News Repeats

00.00 00.20 01.00 01.40

News Kleise Ta Matia (rpt) Mila Mou Vromika (rpt) FILM: Anaconda 3 A scientist recruits a mercenary to help her kill two ravenous giant snakes that have escaped from an underground lab.

Horror, starring David Hasselhoff. 2008.

News Sports News Vradi Me Ton Petro Kotsopoulo Blackout Game show in which places contestants in complete darkness to compete in challenges.

Yia Sena (rpt) Kid’s TV Mia Stigmi Dio Zoes Boukia Kai Syhorio (rpt) Klemmena Oneira (rpt) Chuck Dansing For You (rpt) Master Chef (rpt) News Epta Thanasimes Petheres (rpt) News Anonymous FILM: Spider-Man 2 Peter Parker is beset with troubles in his failing personal life as he battles a scientist named Doctor Otto Octavius. Action sequel, starring Tobey Maguire and Kirsten Dunst. 2004.

Vals Me 12 Theous News Me To Dexi (rpt) FILM: Goal II: Living The Dream A Mexican footballing sensation signs to play for Real Madrid, where he encounters a new world of temptation.

Drama sequel, starring Kuno Becker, Anna Friel. 2007.

Christmas comedy, starring Bill Murray and Karen Allen. 1988. See Pick Of The Day.

22.40

Proini Enimerosi Tango Yia Treis (rpt) Cheek To Cheek (rpt) Oi Men kai Oi Den (rpt) Vodka Portokali (rpt) Deixe Mou To Filo Sou (rpt) 40 Kimata (rpt) Ta Koritsia Tou Baba (rpt) Galileo (rpt) Yia Tin Agapi Sou (rpt) Ekeino To Kalokairi (rpt) Niose Me (rpt)

MEGA

With News at 18.00.

Candid Camera Unsuspecting people react to bizarre events.

Local Sketch News Savvato Ki Apovrado Variety show, with wellknown guests pretending to have a good time for the benefit of You At Home.

NRG Zone Kids’ TV

Concert movie, which follows Miley Cyrus backstage, at rehearsals and performing her songs as Hannah Montana, with the Jonas Brothers. 2008.

Edoxe Ti Vouli Kai To Dimo News Me Kali Parea Vivian Kanari hosts new show featuring a mix of news, information and live music.

ANTENNA

Fireman Sam, The Legend of Frosty the Showman, Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer, etc. Shown till 12.30, then repeated till mid-afternoon.

Moiraia Fengaria (rpt) Local drama series.

10.30

CYBC 2

02.20

Repeats

SIGMA 06.30 07.30 08.30 10.00 14.00 14.50 16.40

Oi Takkoi (rpt) Zoi Podilato (rpt) Kids’ TV Mes Stin Kala Hara Oikogeneiakes Istories (rpt) Aspra Balonia (rpt) 7 Ouranoi kai Synnefa Alites (rpt)

PLUS TV 06.50 07.50 12.05 13.00 13.40

Second season. ‘The Wrath of Con’. Blair pressures Georgina into making amends for her past bad behaviour by helping her in a scheme. Meanwhile. the rivalry between Nate and Chuck over Blair comes to a head.

With News at 18.00.

18.10

The Cooking Factory Greek cookery show.

19.00

Pame Paketo (rpt) Popular talk-show that deals with human interest stories such as reuniting people, fulfilling dreams.

20.15 21.20

23.10 23.50 23.55

14.25

CSI: Crime Scene Investigation (rpt) News The 4400 (rpt)

15.15 16.30 17.30 19.00

00.40 04.00

Mes Stin Kali Hara (rpt) Magazino (rpt)

21.00 22.30 23.15 23.45 00.40

Doureios Ippos (rpt) News Fab 5 (rpt)

Fotis - Maria Live Best Of Mesimeriani Meleti Best Of Mila (rpt) FILM: Sweet November A hard-hearted businessman falls for fun-loving woman, but he soon discovers their time together can only be fleeting. Romantic drama, starring Keanu Reeves. 2001.

FBI agents investigate the sudden reappearance of 4,400 people who mysteriously vanished 50 years ago.

07.00 11.15 13.30 15.15 15.30 16.05 16.10

Nona Exelixeis Stin Showbiz Kostakis Ki Yioi LTV Sports News Repeats

Kids’ TV Telemarketing Greek FILM: Sinnefiasmenoi Orizontes Mila Mou Prasina Kouzina Me Apopsi (rpt) News FILM: Blind Date A businessman takes a date to an important business dinner - but she throws the evening into chaos by getting hopelessly drunk.

Romantic comedy, with Bruce Willis. 1987. With News at 17.30.

One Tree Hill (rpt) Second season. ‘The Tide That Left and Never Came Back’.

Brooke and Lucas visit Haley in New York, where their relationship goes a stage further than they expected.

News FILM: A Christmas Kiss An aspiring designer falls in love with her boss’s boyfriend while decorating his house. Romantic drama, starring Laura Breckenridge. 2011.

Star News (rpt) Kids’ TV LTV Sports News (rpt) Star News Gossip Girl (rpt)

CAPITAL

18.00 18.55 19.05 19.55 20.05 21.00

Remington Steele News Acapulco HEAT News Rubi FILM: Fallen Angel A man strives to forget his traumatic childhood - but is forced to face the past when he learns of his father’s death. Drama, starring Gary Sinise. 2003.

22.50

FILM: The Badge A sheriff’s investigation into the murder of a transsexual, causes outrage within the prejudiced community.

Thriller, starring Billy Bob Thornton 2002.

00.45

FILM: Mean Creek A teenager sets up a trap to exact revenge on the bully who has made his life a misery.

Drama, starring Rory Culkin. 2004.

No Strings Attached (Novacinema4, 15.25)

01:10 The Weakest Link 01:55 Lead Balloon 02:25 Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps 02:55 Doctors 03:25 Tribal Wives 04:25 ‘Allo ‘Allo! 05:00 Lead Balloon 05:30 Alan Carr: Chatty Man 06:15 The Weakest Link 07:00 Charlie And Lola 07:10 Nina and the Neurons 07:25 Show Me Show Me 07:50 Teletubbies 08:15 Charlie And Lola 08:25 Nina and the Neurons 08:40 Show Me Show Me 09:05 Teletubbies 09:30 Charlie And Lola 09:40 The Weakest Link 10:25 The Green Green Grass: Xmas Special 2007 11:05 Last Of The Summer Wine 11:35 New Tricks 12:25 The Diamond Queen 13:20 Big Top 13:50 As Time Goes By 14:15 The Green Green Grass: Xmas Special 2007 15:00 Casualty 15:50 EastEnders 17:45 New Tricks 18:35 The Diamond Queen 19:25 The Weakest Link: Pantomime Special 20:15 Doctor Who 21:05 Michael McIntyre’s Comedy Roadshow 21:50 The Royle Family: Joe’s Crackers 22:50 Alan Carr: Chatty Man 23:35 Victoria Wood’s Midlife Christmas 24:35 The Impressions Show With Culshaw & Stephenson

07:00 How It’s Made ; 07:25 Rides 08:15 Fifth Gear 09:10

Mega Builders 10:05 Mighty Ships 10:55 Aircrash Confidential 14:30 Extreme Engineering 15:25 Man Made Marvels Asia 16:20 Mega Builders 17:15 How It’s Made ; 18:10 James May’s Man Lab 19:05 Mythbusters 20:00 How It’s Made ; 21:00 Auction Hunters 22:00 Auction Kings 23:00 Gi Dough 00:00 Dynamo: Magician Impossible 01:00 Could You Survive? 01:55 Auction Kings 02:50 Gi Dough 03:50 Dynamo: Magician Impossible 04:50 How It’s Made ; 05:15 Auction Hunters 06:05 Mega Builders

09:30 Snooker: International Championship China 10:45 Tennis: French Open Paris 12:00 All Sports: Watts 13:00 Snooker: World Championship Un. Kingdom 14:00 Football: Uefa Champions League Classics 16:00 Tennis: Us Open New York 17:30 Tennis: Mats Point 18:00 All Sports: Watts 21:30 All Sports: Eurosport Top 10 22:00 Fight Sport: Superkombat 00:00 Fight Sport: The Battle 01:30 Fight Sport: Total Ko

05:40 Work Of Art: The Next

Great Artist 06:30 Off The Map 09:30 Desperate Housewives 10:20 Modern Family 11:10 New Girl 12:00 Happy Endings 12:25 Don’t Trust The B...

In Apartment 12:50 Masterchef 14:30 The Gates 17:40 Body Of Proof 18:30 Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations 20:10 Jamie’s Best Ever Christmas 21:00 Jane

By Design 21:50 Revenge 22:40 Raising Hope 23:05 Melissa & Joey 23:30 Glee 00:20 Castle 04:25 Modern Family

07:00 Ancient Aliens 10:00 UFO Hunters 12:00 Ancient Aliens 15:00 UFO Hunters 17:00 Ancient Aliens 19:00 Storage Wars 20:00 Pawn Stars 20:30 Cajun Pawn Stars 21:00 American Pickers 22:00 Storage Wars 23:00 Pawn Stars 23:30 Cajun Pawn Stars 00:00 American Pickers 01:00 Storage Wars 02:00 Pawn Stars 02:30 Cajun Pawn Stars 03:00 American Pickers 04:00 Ancient Aliens 05:00 UFO Hunters

07:30 Hollywood Buzz 08:00 PleasanTV ille 10:10 Videofashion 10:45 Mars Attacks! 12:45 Peacemaker 15:00 Takers 17:00 Pre-

7 Hoods 14:20 Welcome To The Rileys 16:15 Slammin’ Salmon, The 18:00 Little Princess, A 20:00 Kisses 21:30 Action Zone (E) 22:00 Social Network, The 00:05 Daring! Tv 03:20 Funny Bones 05:30 Man With Two Brains, The

Game 18:00 A’ Division Cyprus Soccer Championship 2012-13 20:00 LTV Sports News 21:00 Bad Boys 23:05 Lovely Bones 01:25 Hustler TV 03:15 Miss Pettigrew Lives For A Day 05:00 Grace Is Gone 06:30 LTV Sports News

07:00 The Looney Tunes Show 07:25 Loonatics Unleashed 07:50 Wonder Pets 08:20 Dora The Explorer 08:50 Ni Hao, Kai-Lan 09:20 Spongebob Squarepants 09:45 Tak & The Power Of Juju 10:10 Fanboy & Chum Chum 10:35 The X’s 11:00 The Mighty B! 11:30 My Life As A Teenage Robot 12:00 Hey Arnold! 12:30 Icarly 13:30 Max Adventures 14:05 Barclays Premier League Preview 14:45 Barclays Premier League 2012-

13 19:00 Liga Bbva 2012-13 23:00 Barclays Premier League 2012-13 01:00 Liga Bbva 201213 03:00 Barclays Premier League 2012-13

07:15 Gossip Girl 08:00 Entourage 08:35 The Big Bang Theory 09:00 According To Jim 09:55 Two And A Half Men 10:45 Supernatural 11:30 The Mentalist 12:30 Pan Am 13:15 The Closer 14:15 Ncis: Los Angeles 15:00 According To Jim 00:15 Miracle 02:30 Hung 03:00 Strike Back 04:40 Underbelly

07:15 Before Sunrise 09:00 Last Starfighter, The 10:45 Eruption 12:15 Robin And The

05:05 Monsters 06:40 In Time 08:30 Winnie The Pooh 09:40 Diary Of A Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules 11:20 Jack And Jill 12:55 Bright Star 15:00 Ncis 15:50 Cine News 16:40 Love Crime 22:00 Christmas Magic 23:40 The Grey 01:45 Retreat 03:15 The Siege

06:35 Manhattan Murder Mystery 08:25 Cine News 09:25 A Little Bit Of Heaven 11:15 The King Of Comedy 13:10 War Horse 15:40 Scusa Ma Ti Chiamo Amore 17:35 Mad On Novacinema 18:15 Serendipity 19:55 Largo Winch 2: The Burma Conspiracy 22:00 Morning Glory 23:55 The Negotiator 02:15 Payback 04:00 Cine News 04:40 Extreme Measures

06:25 Suddenly, Last Summer

08:20 The Man Who Wasn’t There 10:15 Stolen Lives 11:50 Big Mommas: Like Father, Like Son 13:40 Appointment With Death 17:15 Bad Teacher 18:55 Gran Torino 21:00 Hanna 23:00 Street Kings 2: Motor City 00:40 Cine News 01:30 Adult Zone 03:35 Your Highness

05:05 Patch Adams 07:00 Mpilompa 08:45 My Future Boyfriend 10:05 Mars Needs Moms 13:25 Absence Of Malice 15:25 No Strings Attached 17:20 Monte Carlo 19:20 The Beaver 21:00 War Of The Buttons 22:55 Emma 01:00 Black Swan 02:50 One True Thing

07:00 They Died With Their Boots On 09:15 Bad Day At Black Rock 10:35 Hucksters, The 12:30 Band Wagon, The 14:20 Light In The Piazza 16:00 Royal Wedding 17:30 Go West 18:50 Invasion Quartet 20:20 Wizard Of Oz, The 22:00 Where Eagles Dare 00:30 Pennies From Heaven 02:15 Quo Vadis 05:10 Passage to Marseille

By Preston Wilder

Scrooged (CyBC2, 21.00) Actually a comedy double-bill on CyBC tonight and the much better film is The Ladies’ Man at 22.40, wherein Jerry Lewis lives in a big house with lots of women and says (of himself) that “he works like a son of a gun”, but it’s almost Christmas so let’s go with this so-so update of A Christmas Carol. Bill Murray is Scrooge - which is obviously perfect casting, except that he’s been turned into the grumpy president of a TV network whose misanthropic attitude is turned around by the inevitable ghosts: David Johansen (of New York Dolls fame) plays Christmas Past as a chainsmoking cabbie, while Christmas Present (Carol Kane) is a fairy with violent tendencies. Sounds like fun - but

the jokes aren’t funny enough, the actors look bored, and Bill Murray is a genius but a big sentimental speech about the True Meaning of Christmas is one thing he can’t pull off, however hard he works at it.

And he works like a son of a gun. Made in 1988.

Christmas Magic (Novacinema1, 22.00) Ah, Christmas. A time of magic and goodwill to all men, when we watch films about Santa Claus, or grumpy misers learning to be generous and loving, or young women counselling suicidal single dads after dying in car crashes. Wait, what was that last part? Lindy Booth is the heroine of this dire-sounding

Christmas Magic

made-for-TV thingy, going to that big Christmas party in the sky after talking on her mobile phone instead of watching the road (Lindy, Lindy, Lindy...). Before she can pass into Heaven, however, she needs to ‘earn her wings’ as an angel - her mission being to convince chubby widower Paul McGillion that life is worth living, the alternative being that Paul will kill himself and leave his 8-year-old daughter an orphan. All a bit morbid for a heartwarming Christmas story - but a fan from Canada at the Internet Movie Database calls it “a soothing, relaxing and predictable movie”, so I guess the magic re-asserts itself as Lindy tries to save Paul’s failing restaurant business. You do realise this is a dead person we’re talking about, right? Made in 2011.

CYPRUS MAIL Saturday, December 22, 2012

21

CRYPTIC CROSSWORD 2269 1

2

3

4

5

PREVIOUS DAY’S SOLUTIONS

6

7 8

9 10

11 12 14

HOW TO PLAY: Fill in the grid so that every row, every column and every 3x3 box contains the digits 1-9. There’s no maths involved, you solve the puzzle with reasoning and logic.

With the ‘X’ sudoku, the shaded X must also contain the numbers 1-9.

13

15

16

17 18

20

19

21

EASY

EASY

MEDIUM

HARD

22 23

1 Take the blame when watering the garden? (5,3,3) 2 In the barrel I could see a souvenir (5) 3 Not busy doing nothing (8) 4 Left Italian no particular prayer (6) 5 Pretentious cobbler? (4) 6 Fundamental principles of interest to geologists? (7) 9 Lack of precision in old part of play with cape (11) 12 Poor person Edward is miserable (8) 14 Credit note in place of rent (7) 17 Protects part of the field (6) 19 Means to rebuild the house (5) 21 Informer from Jefferson, Arkansas (4)

Rating EASY

1 Hearty drink (7) 7 Requiring help at hotel alongside ebbing river (2,4) 8 Trusting dependent (7) 10 Prohibition placed on a nobleman (5) 11 Gin Cathy prepared whilst sailing (8) 13 Steersman found many a steer (3) 14 Is he the fellow to keep at bay? (4) 15 Difficult journey from amphitheatre Ken made (4) 16 It is given by attentive people (3) 18 Try trick first causing disrespect (8) 20 Learner taken in by awfully vain man (5) 22 Measure he can potentially improve (7) 23 Recorder making twenty? (6) 24 Sorrow displayed by Danes travelling aboard (7)

Rating HARD

Down

Rating MEDIUM

Across

Rating MEDIUM

24

Answers to crossword 2268

HOROSCOPE

CRYPTIC: Across – 1 Scotched; 6 Dash; 8 Propel; 9 Sultan; 10 Periscope; 13 Boor; 14 Sag; 15 Cane; 16 Apathetic; 19 Signet; 20 Hollow; 21 Idle; 22 Redstart. Down – 2 Carp; 3 Tope; 4 Helter-skelter; 5 Distinguished; 6 Delicacy; 7 Stamping; 11 Complied; 12 Pretence; 17 Slat; 18 Moor.

QUICK: Across – 1 Mnemonic; 6 Mark; 8 Bantam; 9 Reside; 10 Constable; 13 Mist; 14 Tom; 15 Rant; 16 Chanteuse; 19 Canada; 20 Really; 21 Thud; 22 Elephant. Down – 2 Neat; 3 Mate; 4 Name of the game; 5 Christmas tree; 6 Massacre; 7 Redolent; 11 Mishmash; 12 Standard; 17 Bath; 18 Clan.

ARIES March 21 - April 20

LEO July 23 - August 22

SAGITTARIUS November 23 - December 21

With practical matters to attend to, the tendency to forget and move into a dreamier state may be strong. Your mind may be far away with a desire to escape the current round of tasks, and go on an adventure. If you have last-minute shopping to do, it helps to make a list, as your mind may be everywhere else except on the matter at hand.

This could be a busy day that seems to focus on groups or gatherings. Fun new acquaintances may bring a smile to your face. There’s lots of opportunity to connect meaningfully with some of the people you meet. If the day doesn’t seem to gel, indecision could be to blame. In fact, it may help to consider a few ideas rather than make a bad choice.

You may have a vision of how you can make your home even more appealing, perhaps focused on festive considerations. This might encourage you to go on a spending spree with a view to getting your place ship-shape and shimmering with decorations. The Moon in Taurus may coincide with thoughts of health and wellbeing. Don’t lose the exercise habit.

TAURUS April 21 - May 21

VIRGO August 23 - September 23

CAPRICORN December 22 - January 20

You may be on the brink of making a long-range decision, and yet feeling uncertain about which path to take. The need for security may help you to clarify things and ensure that you choose the right option. A meeting with a friend may find you going down memory lane. Yet despite the pull of nostalgia, try to bring the past into the present.

You may be busy putting the final touches to those home decorations - and while you’re at it, don’t forget the mistletoe. Your creative juices seem to be simmering nicely, so if you get a bright idea, this is the time to explore it, and see if it has wings. Romance is also a hot topic, with passion and soulful feelings forecasted. If need be, adjust your schedule.

Narrow minded thinking may push you to take an issue to an extreme. However, a more considered approach may prove better. A special planetary angle between the Sun and Neptune brings a chance to share a conversation with someone you care about. You may decide to spill the beans and unleash your romantic side. You might not regret it.

GEMINI May 22 - June 21

LIBRA September 24 - October 23

AQUARIUS January 21 - February 19

Don’t let yesterday’s dreams evade realistic achievement.

Use this morning and afternoon to plan goals with others that bring chances to expand your options. There’s plenty to look forward to today, as a visionary idea may encourage you to set a new career goal. You may be planning your getaway, rather than spend this holiday season at home.

Today’s Taurus Moon may incline you to enjoy the good things in life, something you often relish. It may be an idea to frequent your local spa and get a few beauty treatments under your belt before the festivities begin. This is your chance to pamper yourself, before the demands of friends and family take over leaving you little time for yourself.

The Sun, newly in your spiritual zone, encourages a chance to spend more time alone doing your own thing.

You’ll still be up for all the fun and festivities going on, but you’ll also notice a desire to reflect on your priorities and to mull over sensitive issues in your life. The Moon in Taurus may encourage an evening in by the fire with friends or family.

CANCER June 22 - July 22

SCORPIO October 24 - November 22

PISCES February 20 - March 20

You may be mulling over certain unfulfilled needs. If you pace yourself, the afternoon brings a chance for you and your sweetheart to be there for each other with an opportunity to enjoy family togetherness. The Moon in Taurus livens up your social zone, so get into the festive spirit and do something special with your lover or your friends.

Your love of splashing the cash continues, so make this the day to get last-minute presents and anything else you might need for the holiday week. Romance may be in the air, as a special aspect between the Sun and Neptune brings the chance of a warm and tender conversation. A date today may prove quite magical and one to remember.

You’ll be busy at work or attending to career goals, but you’ll be having fun too. Your boss seems to be in a jolly mood and this seems infectious. A friendship may develop greater depth, which may bring you a lot closer to a certain person. You may find there are things you can share with each other that you can’t talk about with anyone else.

22

Saturday, December 22, 2012 CYPRUS MAIL

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Send your classified by fax or email and pay by credit card, cheque or cash. It couldn’t be simpler!

Nicosia - email: classified@cyprus-mail.com Limassol - email: limassol@cyprus-mail.com Paphos - email: paphos@cyprus-mail.com

JOB WANTED ***************************** MY NAME IS NALIN DARSHANA. I am from Sri Lanka. I am looking for a job, living in or out. I can do any kind of job.

I have release paper and Cyprus full licence. I can speak English well. Call 96261313 ***************************** MY NAME IS NEELA SUDARSHANE. I am from Sri Lanka.

I am looking for a job, living in or out. I have two years experience. I have release paper.

Call 96871375, 96261313 *****************************

MISCELLANEOUS BDL SHIPPING Worldwide animal transportation, Home removals including small loads Vehicle import & export, General collection and delivery (including IKEA), Rubbish removal plus general transportation & shipment. Competitive rates. Phone: 99239311 Web: www.bdlcyprus.com ***************************** I AM RAJWINDER KAUR from India currently residen and working in Cyprus. I have changed my name from Rajwinder Kaur to Rajwinder Kaur Sandhu all concerned may note. ***************************** ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS CYPRUS

Is drink costing you more than just money? AA could be the answer.

Meeting at the following locations/days. Call to speak to an AA member.

Ayia Napa Monday 97798043 Larnaca Tuesday (Polish spk) 96616589 Thursday 24645523 / 99259264 Limassol Tuesday / Wednesday / Friday / Saturday 25368265 / 99559322 Nicosia Wednesday/Sunday 99013596 Paphos Tuesday / Thursday / Saturday 99916331 / 99399240 Details of meetings are available on www.aa-europe. net *****************************

HEALTH & FITNESS ACUPUNCTURE, cupping, skin

honing, massage. For the alleviation of aches, pains, stress and rehabilitation from illness or injury. Qualified Chinese practitioner. Pafos [Konia] 9922 1851.CLINICAL PILATES. Personalised Clinical Pilates by Physiotherapists in Nicosia. Individual assessment and supervision of exercises. “Clinical pilates” is a modified form of therapeutic exercise used by physiotherapists to assist in the rehabilitation and prevention of musculoskeletal injury especially lower back pain, sacro-iliac pain and neck pain. More info on 22446988.

Nicosia - tel: 22 818583 fax: 22 676385 mon-frid 10-2pm. *****************************

*****************************

PERSONAL ***************************** AUSTRIAN INGENEUR, 50 years, searching for a nice women. Mobile: 004917365562 or 00491726293462 *****************************

LESSONS

LOUISE, she is around 1 year old Segugio Italiano cross and she is not suitable for hunting.

She will make a perfect pet as she loves cuddles , hugs and kisses. Very playful gentle girl ,friendly with other dogs and loves kids! At the Nicosia Dog Shelter, many more dogs and puppies like this one are looking for forever homes !

To provide a temporary foster home or to adopt contact on 99520511 mon-frid 10-2pm. *****************************

***************************** TIME FOR A CAREER CHANGE? Learn how to teach English! The London Teacher Training College is offering TEFL Certificate courses in Cyprus. For more information call now on 99839307. *****************************

PETS *****************************

TAG 87, a very handsome young male wirehaired pointer cross around 1,5 years old.

Friendly, attentive and athletic.

At the Nicosia Dog Shelter, many more dogs and puppies like this one are looking for forever homes ! To provide a temporary foster home or to adopt contact on 99520511

OZZY is an adorable male which came into the shelter almost a year ago! The person who found him wanted to help increase his re-homing chances so he sponsored his neutering...! But Ozzy has since been sitting in the shelter wishing for a new family... !But he has a great character and is only around 2 years old! At the Nicosia Dog Shelter, many more dogs and puppies like this one are looking for forever homes ! To provide a temporary foster home or to adopt contact on 99520511 mon-frid 10-2pm. *****************************

SERVICES PROFESSIONAL UPHOLSTERY CLEANING, also car-

Limassol - tel: 25 761117 fax: 25 761141

pets, rugs and mattresses.

Special offers now available.

For a quote call Rickys Cleaning Services on 99131044 (all areas) rickyscleaningservices@gmail.com ***************************** DO YOU NEED A WEB-SITE BUT ARE CONCERNED ABOUT THE COST? Web design & hosting at exceptionally low prices, experienced designer & programmer , your dream web-site is only a phone call away. Don’t delay!!! Call Andros for a free quote or consultation on 99335078, info@akalou.com, - islandwide ***************************** CHIMNEY SWEEP, when did you last have your chimney swept or log burner cleaned?

Build-up of soot can cause respiratory problems and fires. All areas, call Dave, a professional sweep, now on 99819137. Also available for weddings. www.paphosluckychimneysweep.com ***************************** DO YOU WANT A SHINY LOOKING FLOOR? Full repair & restoration of chipped, scratched, dull and stained, Marble, Terrazzo, Stone & Ceramic tiled floors and surfaces.

Professional cleaning, repair & sealing of internal/external ceramic tiles & grout lines. For a free professional consultation & demonstration contact Mark at Premier on 70006766 or 96333961 All areas K.D.FLYSCREENS LTD We manufacture top quality sliding screens, opening doors and roller systems. We also do repairs. For a FREE QUOTE please contact Phone: 99119582 Website: www.kdflyscreens.com WE UNDERTAKE REFURBISHING of houses or holiday homes, construction of pergolas, undertaking of plumbing, house painting, garden work.

For information call JIMMYS: 96587137, MELIS: 96547879

FOR SALE MISCELLANEOUS CLOTHES STOCKS AND SHOP FITTINGS FOR SALE. Excellent women’s brands for sale including Italian, Spanish and French clothes and shoes. Also women’s dummies and modern wall fittings (clothes rails.) Selling at very low prices for clearance. Tel: 99-168943

TO LET BUSINESS/ PROPERTY/LAND BUSINESS FOR RENT on Ap-

Paphos - tel: 26 911383 fax: 26221049 ostolou Pavlou avenue, Paphos, prime location, large area, can be used for office or any business, no goodwill, excellent price: €750 o.n.o. Tel: 99654122

FOR SALE BUSINESS/ PROPERTY/LAND FOR SALE 721SQ.M. PLOT AT A PRIVILEGED LOCATION IN STROVOLOS AREA. THE PLOT IS ON A PARALLEL OF IOSIF HADJIOSIF AVE. & LAODIKIAS, BETWEEN THE TRAFFIC LIGHTS OF K. THEODOROU AND STAVROU AVE. AND IS CLOSE TO A BUS STOP. TEL: 99321785, 22421785 TIMI, PLOTS, a few selected available, seaview, near the 2 golf courses, Venus rock and airport. 60% Building factor, eu 99,000. Half registration fees till the 31.12.12. Tel. 99 621914 ***************************** LARNACA, Alethriko, plots for sale, 525 sqm, 90% building factor, near highway Limassol-Larnaca, 5 min from airport, quiet residential area, eu 109,000. Half registration fees till the 31.12.12. Tel. 99 621914 ***************************** PRIME LAND IS AVAILABLE FOR LONG LEASE IN LIMASSOL. 40, 000 sq.m., zoning Ka7 (80% -45% - 3 stories). Regular amphitheatrical shape overlooking Ladies Mile. Close to New Limassol Hospital with direct access to Limassol – Paphos Highway.

Water supply, electricity and telephones are readily available. Suitable for immediate development. Ideal for various health facilities and resorts, holiday centres, commercial and shopping centres, entertainment enterprises etc.

Information: Tel. 22 674338, 99621554 FOR SALE LAND in Anthoupoli (half plot) 288 sq.metres. for information 99621554.

WANTED TO RENT FLAT OR HOUSE TO RENT, 2-3 bedrooms, veranda/terrace or garden, prefer furnished, SW of Nicosia (in approx area Lakadamia to Kapedes and Kalo Chorio) alan.tye@birdlifecyprus.org.cy, 22455072, 99089083.

FOR SALE MOTOR VEHICLES ***************************** FORD FOCUS GHIA (2006) diesel, 1600cc, 98000km,

Larnaca - tel: 24 652243 fax: 24 659982

classified contents Employment Opportunities pg -Employment Miscellaneous 22 Pets 22 Lessons 22 Health & Fitness 22 Personal 22 Services 22 For Sale Miscellaneous 22 For Sale Land/ Property Business 22 For Sale Motor vehicles 22 Wanted -To Let Nicosia 23 To Let Limassol 24 To Let Larnaca 24 To Let Paphos 24 To Let Protaras, Ayia Napa, Paralimni -For Sale Nicosia 26 For Sale Limassol -For Sale Larnaca -For Sale Paphos 26 For Sale Ayia Napa -For Sale Famagusta Protaras 26 For Sale Athens -Property& Home Services display ads --

abbreviations bdrm c/h a/c s/pool f/f apt pm pw sw nw st rd p/s c/l swb r/cass e/w

bedroom central heating air conditioning swimming pool fully furnished apartment per month per week south west north west street road power steering central locking short wheel base radio cassette electric windows

Please note tel nos. that begin with: 22 = Nicosia 23 = Paralimni/Protaras 24 = Larnaca 25 = Limassol 26 = Paphos

23

CYPRUS MAIL Saturday, December 22, 2012

Advertiser FOR SALE MOTOR VECHICLES blue, automatic - tiptronic. dual zone climate control, power steering, electric windows, 6 airbags, central locking, cruise control, computer board, alloy wheels, and many extras. €7500 ono. Contact: 99022779 - Nicosia *****************************

PROPERTY TO LET NICOSIA ***************************** LUXURY ONE BEDROOM APARTMENT on third floor with view of the Presidential Palace, spacious living room and fully equipped kitchen, a/c, storage heaters and covered private parking. €450 ( common expenses inclusive).

Call 99300020. ***************************** FLATS TO LET - Nicosia: A wide selection of furnished & unfurnished in all areas of Nicosia. NIKARIA ESTATE LTD Theo Loizides 22761616 / 99660050 nikaria@cablenet. com.cy ***************************** FOR RENT spacious modern 5 Bedr house, next to Metro Supermarket, Strovolos, Nicosia. Furnished, 3 Restrooms, air-conditioning throughout, central heating, extra office room, amble storage spaces, covered garage, verandas with pergola, garden, barbecue area, quiet street in a qul de sac. Call 99606856. ***************************** TO LET 3 bedroom house situated on a dead end street next to a small quiet park near Falcon School. Has an En-suite master room, large study room, central heating, a/c and fire place in the living room. For enquiries tel

TO LET NICOSIA 99660758 ***************************** LUXURIOUS APARTMENT FOR RENT A luxurious one floor apartment situated in central Nicosia in an area of exceptional Beauty at 3 Museum Street, is available to let. It has been recently renovated and consists of four bedrooms, two bathrooms, big dining and sitting rooms, kitchen and a huge veranda. Approximate covered area 250 sqm. Monthly rent €1400.00 o.n.o. Tel: 99622370. www.parcon.com. cy ***************************** MODERN 2 BDRM, first floor flat in attractive building in Anthoupolis, very quiet area between the Grammar School and the European University, also very convenient for Pascal and Highgate Schools and the University of Nicosia. Large front veranda, all appliances, modern fittings, light and bright. Furnished or unfurnished €550p.m. Call 99900177. ***************************** 2 ROOMS €125 each, near McDonald’s Engomi only Philippine girls. Call 99663927. ***************************** FOR RENT 3 B/R apartment fully furnished close to Central Bank. 3 W.C., fully airconditioned extra storeroom, owned covered parking. Excellent condition. Information: Tel. 99621554 ***************************** 3 BEDROOMS flat on second floor in a block of six flats, in a nice position at Strovolos area, fully a/c, c/h, covered parking place for one car, recently painted. Rent €650pm. (furnished if required). Tel: 97773358. ***************************** LUXURY HOUSES:

1. 5 bedrs detached house, 550sq.m, built in 2 big plots of

TO LET NICOSIA

TO LET NICOSIA

TO LET NICOSIA

TO LET NICOSIA

land, big garden with grass, big swimming pool with extra fence for children and big covered patio with bbq area, big reception areas with marble floor, fire place and bar, big kitchen with all electrical appliances and sitting room with fire place, maid’s room, floor heating, full a/c, blinds on the windows, master bedroom with en suite bathroom and shower, big bathroom for the other 3 bedrooms and extra shower in the 5th bedroom - Strovolos €2500 (H5ST10001-R), (photos in the website).

2. H3AR0004-R, 3 bedr luxury detached house with central heating, full a/c, 3wc, 2 bathrooms, parquet floor throughout the house, big sitting and dining area, big kitchen with family room opening onto the swimming pool which has big covered area with wooden deck, bbq area, covered parking, in a very quiet area behind Apoel football training ground - Archagelos - €1700 (photos in website).

3. 2 bedr fully renovated semi detached house 120 sq. m, a/c for hot and cold, small yard, FULLY FURNSIHED or not, double glazed windows with aluminum shutters, in a quiet area off Nikis behind Burger King - ACROPOLIS €650 (H2ACS0001-R), (photos in the website).

4. 3 bedr luxury semi-detached house with character, 200sq.m, central heating, full ac, sitting and dining room with fire place, big kitchen with cooker and oven, dishwasher and refrigerator, nice mature garden with flowers, trees and small garden with grass, covered parking, 3wc, 2 bathrooms in a quiet neighborhood. Available middle of January. Agios Andreas €1200 - H3AAD0001-R (photos in website).

5. 4 bedr new luxury detached

house, separate maid’s room, central heating, full Ac, 260sq.m, big kitchen with all the electrical appliances, blinds on all the windows, 4wc, 2 showers, 1 bathroom, 2 covered parking, big garden with grass in a quiet neighbourhood in a dead end near French Ambassador house - Strovolos €1400 (H4ST10045-R), (photos in the website).

6. 3 bedr+big attic room with shower and wc luxury new house, 210sq.m, central heating, full a/c, 4wc, blinds on all windows, cooker and oven in the kitchen, small garden, covered parking near Alpha Mega supermarket - STROVOLOS €1200 (H4ST10007-R), (photos in the website).

7. 3 bedr detached ground floor house with separate maid’s room, with very big garden with grass(200sq.m) and covered patio with bbq and bar, central heating, full a/c, 180sq.m, FULLY FURNISHED or NOT, 2 covered parking, storage room, in a very quiet neighborhood opposite Acropolis park - Acropolis - €1200 - H3ACS0004-R (photos in website).

8. H4LAK0002-R, 3 bedr + office space luxury detached house, built on a big plot, 350sq. m, big swimming pool with cover, garden with grass, big sitting and dining room, separate family room, central heating, a/c, curtains on all the windows, cooker, dishwasher and dryer, parquet floor throughout the house,3wc, 2

bathrooms, 2 covered parking in a quiet area on the borders of Strovolos with Lakatamia Lakatamia- €1600 (photos in website).

9. 3 bedr upstairs and 2 separate bedroom in the basement luxury detached house(all the bedrooms with en suite bathrooms/shower), also separate kitchen and sitting room in the basement which has also separate entrance from the house, central heating, full a/c, solid parquet floor all the house, big sitting and dining room with fire place, big fully equipped kitchen with breakfast area and family room, big overfloor, swimming pool with covered patio area with fully equipped bar(bbq, fridge, freezer, cooker), mature garden around the house, 2 parking places, alarm system near the Cyprus Conference Centre- PLATY AGLANTZIAS €3500 (H5PAG0002-R), (photos in the website).

10. 4 bedr semi detached house with central heating, 4 a/c, 3 wc, 2 bathrooms, 180sq.m, electrical appliances, small yard, bbq area, off Kostantinoupoleos street near French ambassador residence.- STROVOLOS €700 (H4ST10043-R), (photos in the website).

11. 4 bedr luxury semi detached house with good size garden with grass, big covered patio with bbq area, central heating, a/c units, 3wc, 2 bathrooms, 2 covered parking, FULLY FURNISHED AND EQUIPPED, in a quiet area in a dead end close to all amenities and

schools. - ANTHOUPOLIS €1300 (H4ANT0002-R), (photos in the website).

12. H4AGZ0010-R, 3 bedr RENOVATED GROUND FLOOR HOUSE with big separate 1 bedroom flat with multi room, big sitting and dining room , separate tv room, big kitchen with family room and fitted cooker and oven, 3wc, 2 bathrooms, very big 5 X 6 bedrooms with solid parquet floor, central heating with petrol independent, a/c units, double glazed windows with shutters, big verandas around the house, in a very quiet neighbourhood 200metres from FRENCH school and near Athalassas park Aglantzia - €1300 (photos in website).

13. 3 bedr ground floor house with big separate 80sq,m room with shower and wc for multi use, central heating independent, full a/c, 2wc, 2 shower,1 bathroom, fully furnished, small garden, bbq area, parking, on a small building in a very quiet area near Agios Vasilios church. Strovolos - €900 - H4ST10028-R (photos in website).

14. 3 bedr + big attic room with shower and wc luxury new house,210sq.m, central heating, full a/c, 4wc, blinds on all windows, cooker and oven in the kitchen, small garden, covered parking near Alpha Mega supermarket - Strovolos - €1200 – H4ST10007-R (photos in website).

15. 3 bedr detached house with extra room for office,

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24

Saturday, December 22, 2012 CYPRUS MAIL

Advertiser TO LET NICOSIA

TO LET NICOSIA

TO LET NICOSIA

TO LET NICOSIA

250sq.m, central heating independent, 4a/c, big renovated kitchen with cooker and oven, big sitting and dining room with parquet floor and fire place, 1bathroom, 2 shower, 3wc, 2 covered parking, double glazed windows and shutters in bedrooms, big verandas surrounded by trees and bushes off 28th October street in the central part of Makedonitissa - Makedonitissa - €1100 – H3MAK0004-R (photos in website).

For many more properties with photos visit our website at www.landtouristestates.com which is updated daily. LANDTOURIST ESTATES LTD 22-422225/96422225/96422226, www.landtouristestates. com

windows, covered parking in a quiet neighborhood off Prodromou close Ministry od Defence – Engomi- € 700 – A3ENG0026-R (photos in website).

4. A1DAS0010-R, 1 bedr luxury spacious apartment with big sitting and dining room, big bathroom, big bedroom with shutters, covered veranda, storage heaters, 2a/c, cooker and oven in the kitchen, covered parking in a quiet area in a small modern building near Acropolis Park. Dasoupolis €400 (photos in website).

5. 2 bedr new luxury modern furnished apartment , central heating ind, 2 a/c, big covered veranda and covered parking in a quiet area behind the Municipal building – Agios Dometios - € 660 - A2ADO0004-R (photos in website).

6. 2 bedr luxury spacious apartment on a small modern building with central heating independent(with petrol), full a/c, solid parquet floor, big bedrooms, big sitting room with open plan kitchen, big covered veranda, FULLY MODERN FURNISHED, covered parking off Makarios avenue in a quiet area near the centre – Nicosia Centre- € 800 – A2NIC0030-R (photos in website).

7. 4 bedr luxury floor apartment,250sq.m, office, maid’s room, central heating ind, full hidden wall unit a/c,2 showers, 1 bathroom, 3wc, parquet floor, big kitchen with cooker and oven, bbq on the veranda in the kitchen, big sitting area, roller blinds on all the windows, alarm system, big veranda on a small building off Athalasas avenue near Alpha Mega supermarket and Areteion hospital – Dasoupolis - € 1100 - A4DAS0002-R (photos in website).

8. A1ACS0007- R, 1 bedr luxury spacious apartment with 2 a/c for hot and cold, electrical appliances in the kitchen, big bedroom, covered veranda, blinds, covered parking, in

a quiet area near Acropolis park. NICELY FURNISHED. Acropolis €450 (photos in website).

9. 3 bedr new luxury finished PENTHOUSE apartment 150sq.m internal areas+120sq. verandas, solid parquet floor all the flat, big bedrooms, big sitting and dining room, big semi separate kitchen with electrical appliances, home cine ma with big screen, LCD tv, covered parking in a quiet neighborhood near CYTA, Laiki + Hellenic bank headquarters and French school. CAN BE RENTED ALSO expensive MODERN furnished – Dasoupolis - € 1200 - A3DAS0019-R (photos in website).

10. A2AOM0009-R 2 bedr luxury finished apartment in a small building with 4 flats only, central heating with petrol independent, full a/c, 2 bedrooms with en-suite bathroom/shower, separate guest wc, NICE MODERN EXPENSIVE FURNITURE, big covered veranda, covered parking, storage room, in a very quiet neighbourhood very close to Junior school and the park - Agioi Omologites € 800 (photos in website).

11. 3 bedr luxury spacious ground floor apartment with separate entrance, big verandas and garden, big sitting and dining room, central heating independent, full a/c, 2wc, very big master bedroom, electrical appliances in the kitchen, aluminum shutters on windows, parquet laminate floor all the flat, covered parking, storage room, in a very quiet neighbourhood in a dead end street, off Athalasas Avenue behind Stephanis near English School €700 (A3ST10030-R), (photos in the website).

12. A2LYK0006-R, 2 bedr penthouse apartment with big veranda 60sq.m, storage heaters, full a/c, 2 bathrooms (one en suite), big sitting room, big separate kitchen with cooker and oven, blinds, covered

parking near Agios Antonios market CLOSE TO THE UNIVERSITY. Lykavitos €510 (photos in website).

13. 3 bedr luxury apartment with central heating independent, full a/c, 2 bathrooms, parquet floor, big sitting and dining area, big covered veranda, covered parking, storage room, blinds, shutters in the bedrooms, big kitchen with all expensive electrical appliances, off Makarios avenue near the centre – Nicosia Centre- € 800 – A3NIC0025-R (photos in website).

14. 4 bedr new spacious luxury finished floor apartment with floor heating independent, full a/c, 3wc, electrical appliances in the kitchen, blinds on all windows, very big 50sq.m covered veranda, fire place, covered parking and big overfloor heated covered swimming pool on the ground floor, on a small 3 storey building in a quiet neighborhood near a playground and near Ippokration private hospital Engomi - €2000 A4ENG0003-R (photos in website).

15. 2 bedrs new luxury apartment, sitting room open plan with kitchen which includes cooker, oven, refrigerator and washing machine, 2 wc, central heating, full AC, blinds on the windows, very big covered verandas, covered parking and storage room in a dead end off Athalassas avenue near Laiki popular bank and Hellenic bank headquarters. - DASOUPOLI €550 (A2DAS0006-R), (photos in the website).

For many more properties with photos visit our website at www.landtouristestates. com which is updated daily. LANDTOURIST ESTATES LTD 22-422225 / 96-422225 / 96422226 www.landtouristestates. com

***************************** LUXURY FLATS:

1. 3 bedr luxury finished spacious floor apartment with very big sitting and dining areas with family room with fire place, solid parquet floor all throught, central heating independent, full a/c, all the bedrooms with en suite shower/bathroom, 4wc, big kitchen with all the electrical appliances, blinds on all windows, big covered veranda, covered parking, big storage room, on a small 3 storey building in a quiet neighborhood – Agios Andreas- € 1300 – A3AAD0005-R (photos in website).

2. AINIC0006- R, 1 bedr., fully furnished and equipped apartment, 50sq.m, 2AC for hot and cold, covered verandah, covered parking, nice view, off Makarios avenue between Hilton and DEBENHAMS shop. Nicosia centre, € 450 (photos in website).

3. 3 bedr new luxury big apartment 150sq.m+big 25sq.m veranda with very nice view, big sitting and dining areas, big separate kitchen with all the electrical appliances, big bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, storage heaters, full a/c, shutters and blinds on the

Card designed by Martin Sebok, Year 3 (Age 7)

THE MANAGEMENT, STAFF & PUPILS OF THE INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL OF PAPHOS WISH YOU ALL A HAPPY CHRISTMAS!

Let us welcome the New Year with health, hope & love.

This year, instead of sending Christmas cards, the school has made a donation of 950 to the children’s ward of the General Hospital.

***************************** 2 BDRM flat in the centre of Nicosia. Rent €450. For information call 99453663,

TO LET LIMASSOL 99663927. *****************************

LIMASSOL ***************************** 4 BEDROOM HOUSE IN EPISKOPI Split level 4-yearold house detached with central heating, a/c all over the house, lounge dinning room, separate kitchen, utility room, en-suite master bedroom, parking, three wcs. Price 800 euros (negotiable) 25337400 ***************************** 3 BEDROOM HOUSE IN YPSONAS 3-year-old two storey detached house situated in a private area of Ypsonas with separate kitchen, lounge dinning room, garden, parking en-suite master bedroom a/c all over house. 25 337400 Price 700 euros

TO LET LARNACA rent, €350.00 per month For more info pls call 99639378 ***************************** FULLY FURNISHED one bedroom flat near Larco hotel Larnaca. Price €370. Tel: 99202543 *****************************

PAPHOS PAPHOS / PEYIA VILLA, villa for rent in Peyia, 4 bedroom, 4 bathrooms, large sitting-dining area, fully airconditioned and heated, unfurnished, panoramic views, large parking, low rent contact: 99490953, 26815534 3 BDRM VILLA with pool for rent furnished or unfurnished, garden, garage (covered) near Tsada golf course, Tel: 99603330. *****************************

***************************** GROUND FLOOR HOUSE, furnished renovated this year.

Laminated parke floor, and big wardrobes in the 3 bedrooms.

Rent €590.00 Tel 99497576 99886775 *****************************

LARNACA ***************************** 2 BEDROOM NICOLADES SEA VIEW CITY BLOCK, a/c’s in all rooms, private parking, sea view, walking distance to everything, can be used for office or residential. €750, minimum 12 months contract. 99320077 Larnaca ***************************** FOR RENT spacious 3 bedroom apartment with balcony situated in centre of town, semi furnished. Please call 99311152 ***************************** FOR RENT 2 bed, 2 bath, new built apartment, in a quiet scenic location In Alethriko, Larnaca 5 min. to Larnaka, 5 min. to the beach Fully furnished, A/C, communal pool, under covered parking, Long term

APHRODITE HILLS - Villa share at this amazing resort? Now available for discerning people, luxury double rooms, each with own en suite and heating unit and plus of large lounge/dining/ kitchen area, external patios, gardens and swimming pool.

Fully furnished and equipped €800pm plus share of running expenses, min period 6 months or yearly contract renewal. To enquire (or view from January 2013) ring 99178141. A chance not to be missed! ***************************** MR RENT PAPHOS, THE LEADING PROPERTY RENTAL AGENCY IN PAPHOS OFFICE: 26271858 (00357) IF YOU HAVE A PROPERTY TO RENT WE ARE THE RENTAL AGENCY TO CONTACT OFFERING FULL PROPERTY MANAGEMENT & RENT COLLECTION SERVICE 1. UNIVERSAL AREA €450

25

CYPRUS MAIL Saturday, December 22, 2012

Advertiser TO LET PAPHOS

TO LET PAPHOS

TO LET PAPHOS

TO LET PAPHOS

TO LET PAPHOS

TO LET PAPHOS

spacious 3 bedroom first floor apartment, master with ensuite. Situated on small complex with no pool. Fully furnished with modern furniture, fully equipped kitchen with dishwasher. Balcony leads to a large private roof terrace with shaded barbeque area offering views of the sea, storage & sunbathing deck.

2. SEA CAVES €500 we are delighted to offer this detached 2 bedroom villa situated on a corner plot in a quiet residential area offering sea views.

Gated drive for off street parking. Fully enclosed good sized low maintenance garden with private pool offering privacy and shaded areas. Available unfurnished or part furnished.

Pets allowed at owners discretion. Website reference number: RTL_482 3. KISSONERGA €550 modern detached 3 bedroom villa situated in a quiet residential area.

Master bedroom with ensuite, separate kitchen, downstairs guest wc. Enclosed garden offering private pool & off street parking. Available unfurnished though can include kitchen appliances. Pets allowed at owners discretion. Website reference number: RTL_501 4. PEYIA €700 price includes pool cleaning. If you are looking for a villa with breathtaking views & privacy than this property is for you. This modern detached 3 bedroom, 3 bathroom villa is furnished with modern furniture, including satellite TV. One bedroom & bathroom on ground floor.

A spacious enclosed garden with private pool offering stunning views. Off street parking.

Website reference number: RTL_401 5. CHLORAKA €750 modern detached 4 bedroom 3 bathroom villa with ground floor bedroom & bathroom. Beautifully furnished with good quality modern furniture includes sky satellite, fly screens & feature fireplace with modern gas fire. Private pool offering views of the sea. Off street parking.

Situated within walking distance of bus routes & shops.

Website reference number: RTL_611 6. KATO PAPHOS €800 large 4 bedroom detached villa situated in the sought after residential area of Limnaria. Walking distance to the beach and the many amenities of Kato Paphos. Spacious living accommodation offering an enclosed garden with c/pool. Fully furnished with modern furniture & solar panels. Website reference number: RTL_442 7. ANAVARGOS €895 we are delighted to offer this unique 5 bedroom 3 bathroom rustic country home offering spacious living accommodation with large gardens, private pool & stone built bbq & entertainment area. Fully furnished with log burner for those winter months. A real character home worth viewing. Pets allowed. Website reference number: RTL_635 offers considered.

8. TALA €900 a charming detached 4 bedroom villa with

character, situated on a corner plot in a quiet residential area with breathtaking sea views. Spacious living rooms with central heating & real fireplace. Separate kitchen & dining room. Good sized garden offering private pool and stone built barbeque area.

Undercover parking. Available fully furnished. Website reference number: RTL_638 TEL: 97790883 OFFICE: 26271858 VISIT OUR WEBSITE FOR MANY MORE PROPERTIES www.mrrentpaphos.net Email: info@ mrrent-paphos.net

FOR RENT A selection of 1 to 5 bedroom houses & apartments F/F & U/F Universal, Peyia, Tomb of the Kings, Tsada, Timi, Chlorakas & Kato Paphos Landlord & Owners please call 99329357 Or please view at are website www.cyprussands.com Fully Registered Company in Cyprus

communal swimming pool, air conditioning throught, 2 balconies euro 375 p/m o.N.O 2. SEA CAVES, 3 bedroom bungalow, specially fitted for people with disabilities , stunning sea views, free wi-fi, fully furnished with modern furniture, swimming pool, all bedrooms with en-sute, utility room, air conditioning throughout, shutters, very green and secluded area euro 1100 p/m o.N.O 3. EMBA, 2 bedroom apartment, 2 bathroom, modern

furnished, air conditioned throughout, communal swimming pool, covered parking, close to all amenities, euro 330 p/m 4. CHLORAKA, 3 bedroom furnished villa with pool, amazing views, master en-suite, in culde-sac, fully airconditioned with fireplace, euro 700 p/m PLEASE CALL : 99 387842

***************************** 1. UNIVERSAL – superb 2 bed furnished apartment for rent.

Lovely quiet complex with pool, private parking, entry phone system & storage room. €350 per month.

2. UNIVERSAL – one bed furnished apartment on 2nd floor, small quiet well maintained complex with sea views. €300 per month.

3. UNIVERSAL – 2 two bed, 2 bath apartments on superb quiet complex, with 3 pools, gym, sauna, jaccuzi & bowling green. 1 apt furnished, 1 unfurnished from €400 per month.

4. TALA – 2 two bed, 2 bath villa style apts on stunning quiet complex with 4 pools, with off road and underground parking. 1 apt furnished 1 U/F from €360 per month.

PLEASE CALL 96203009 *****************************

***************************** 1. MANDRIA, 2 bedroom apartment, fully furnished with modern furniture, separate kitchen,

***************************** CHLORAKAS, 2 bedroom apartment, fully furnished, large

26

Saturday, December 22, 2012 CYPRUS MAIL

Advertiser TO LET PAPHOS veranda, very quiet location, communal pool, Euro 280 – o.n.o Please call: 99699019 /26910140 ***************************** A DELIGHTFUL AND SPACIOUS 1 bedroom apartment, F/F, top floor, new, located at a peaceful location just 500 from St. George hotel in Chloraka.

A+ quality apt. Within walking distance to amenities, part of a beautiful building with swimming pool, list and other amenities. Only €250p/m Other apts also available near Carrefour in the Centre of Paphos. Call 99403261, 26934650 ***************************** FLOWRON PROPERTY SERVICES LTD: PROVIDING AN EXCEPTIONAL SERVICE FOR TENANTS AND LANDLORDS: PROPERTIES AVAILABLE FOR RENT LONG TERM RENTAL, PROPERTIES WANTED: FULL PROPERTY MANAGEMENT WITH KEY HOLDING AND RENT COLLECTIONS OFFERED

ANAVARGOS: 1 to 3 Bedroom apartments available near to the general hospital, furnished or unfurnished. All properties, have white goods and are modern. The building has a lift and off street parking. Prices from 300-400 Euros per month. Ref 7777 Price 300-400 ANARITA: 3 bed nicely furnished villa in the centre of Anarita village with private pool, off street parking. Prop-

TO LET PAPHOS

TO LET PAPHOS

TO LET PAPHOS

TO LET PAPHOS

FOR SALE PAPHOS

erty has a modern kitchen with granite work tops, sitting and dining area, guest wc. Upstairs 3 bedrooms Master with en suite shower, separate family bathroom. Outside shaded pergolas. Ref 855 Price 600 SECRET VALLEY: 3 bed villa fully furnished 3 bedroom villa with private pool. Nice furniture, master bedroom with on suite shower, family bathroom, 2 bedrooms with twin beds.

Dining area, kitchen, guest WC, off street parking, private pool. Modern Villa. Ref: 1035 Price 700 SERCRET VALLEY: 4 bed beautiful furnished bungalow to the highest of standards, with large bedrooms - en suites, Modern large kitchen fully equipped, sitting and dining area with fire place.

Outside heated pool, off street parking, landscaped gardens and great views. Ref: 1151 Price 1800 TIMI: 3 bed nicely furnished villa with large sitting and dining areas, fire place, full AC. Upstairs large family bathroom, 3 bedrooms, master bedroom having en suite shower and walk in wardrobes. Off street parking, private pool Ref: 722 Price: 600 PEGEIA: 4 bed villa with stunning situated in a lovely quiet location in Pegeia offered unfurnished. The property has 2 down stairs bedrooms, a large sitting room with fire place, central heating, kitchen with Stylish design, dining area.

Upstairs 2 bedrooms, large outside veranda. Outside stunning views Private pool.

Ref: 765 Price: 900 MESGOI: large unfurnished villa situated in a residential area. Property is very modern with fire place, downstairs bedroom with en suite, kitchen and separate utility room, 3 additional bedroom upstairs with master en suite, family bathroom. Outside private pool, fully fenced and private, nice views, pets welcome, suit family with children going to local international school. Ref: 783 Price: 750 TALA: A family home offered part furnished in a quiet residential area, property has off street parking, private pool, central heating and AC, modern kitchen, sitting/dining area, guest wc, upstairs 3 bedrooms with master en suite, family bathroom, sea views. Ref: 988 Price: 750 OFFICE: 120 MAKARIOS AVENUE, PAPHOS. OFFICE: 26600450 MOBILE: 97614070 many properties available on WEB: www. flowron.com Email info@ flowron.com

nished apartment in handy location close to the shopping areas. Large open plan living area and dining area..

Fully fitted dining/kitchen with appliances . Guest WC. Utilty room. 3 double bedrooms one with en-suite. Family bathroom. Balcony & and parking. €500.00 a month. Suit nondrivers!

3. TOMB OF THE KINGS – 3 bed fully furnished apartment in established block. Own entrance via stairway. Open plan living area. Dining kitchen. 3 bedrooms and family bathroom. A/C, sat TV. Internet available. Large balcony area.

Parking. €350.00 per month 4. TALA - 3 bed 3 bath quality furnished villa. Set in enclosed gardens the villa consists of open plan living area with dining space. Fully fitted kitchen with all appliances, door to rear garden. Storage room. Ground floor bedroom with adjacent shower. Stairs to two double bedrooms both en-suite, one with Jacuzzi tub.

Small seating area with adjacent balcony. Pool and off street parking. Landscaped gardens €750.00 per month or close offers only 5. SEA CAVES – 2 bed, 2 bath fully furnished large townhouse set in quiet location.

Open plan living area. Fully fitted kitchen. 2 double bedrooms and family bathroom.

Garden area and parking. Realistically priced. Suit retired people or those wanting a quiet area. €400.00 per month 6. UNIVERSAL AREA. 2 bed fully furnished apartment. Living area, fitted kitchen. 2 double bedrooms and family bathroom. A/C, Enclosed garden area. Comm pool and parking. Euros 375.00 a month or offers. 1 & 2 bed apartments available on Universal starting at €250 per month.

7. LOWER PEYIA - 3 bed, 2.5 bath part furnished villa situated in quiet cul du sac. Open plan living and dining area with doors out to pool and garden. Very large breakfast fitted kitchen. Doors out to garden and pool. Separate guest WC. Stairs to 3 double bedrooms.

Master bedroom very large with en-suite shower. Family bathroom. Private pool, gardens, shutters. €550.00 per month or close offers only.

8. STROUMBI– 3 bed 2.5 bath large unfurnished villa in quiet village area. Spacious open plan living area with feature fireplace and dining space Good sized fitted kitchen and breakfast area. Guest WC with storage area.3 double bedrooms. Master with en-suite bathroom. Family bathroom.

Enclosed gardens, pool and off street parking. Realistically

priced €550.00 per month.

OVNO FOR FULL LISTINGS OF A PA R T M E N T S / T O W N HOUSES AND VILLA PLEASE CALL FOR DETAILS. ALL TYPES OF PROPERTY URGENTLY REQUIRED FOR LONG TERM RENTAL LANDLORDS/OWNERS PLEASE CALL. PLEASE CALL 97648440 or email:- inforentals@aol.com

KATO PAPHOS UNIVERSAL, large 2 bedroom apartment, ground floor, 1 bathroom, kitchen, large veranda, private parking, A/C, satellite TV. Near bus route, shops, banks, quiet apartment. Full furniture.

Communal pool. 92 sq.m covered area. Full TITLE DEEDS. REDUCED €92,000

FOR SALE Semi-detached house in Archangelos area split level on a hill, no houses in front, 3 big bedrooms, 2 big bathrooms and TV room big lounge & dining area, fireplace, fitted kitchen, 40 sq.m. store room, C/H, A/C, solar.

For information call: 99496541

***************************** PEYIA – 3 bedroom villa with modern quality furniture and finishes. Central heating, sky, alarm, infinity pool and stunnning sea and mountain views €700 per month, call: 99389426 ***************************** BRAND NEW APT, opposite Poseidonio Gym, near Carrefour, F/F, a/c, great quality, 1 bdrm, from €340p.m.Tel 99403261 ***************************** RENTAL POINT - PAPHOS PROPERTIES AVAILABLE TO RENT IN THE PAPHOS DISTRICT. JUST A SMALL SAMPLE OF AVAILABLE PROPERTIES. ALL TYPES OF PROPERTY URGENTLY REQUIRED FOR LONG TERM RENTAL. CALL 97648440 FOR MORE INFORMATION. LANDLORDS CALL IF YOU HAVE A PROPERTY FOR RENT.!!!

1. MESA CHORIO – 2 bed 2 bath fully furnished ground floor apartment set on an elevated position in this prestigious development. Open plan living area. Good sized kitchen. 2 double, bedrooms, master with en-suite shower room. Family bathroom. Large patio areas with enclosed gardens and lovely sea views.

Covered parking and security gates.. Comm swimming pool and landscaped gardens. €425.00 a month. 2 bed apartment same complex €400.00 a month.

2 MESOGI 3 bed 3 bath fur-

***************************** REFURBISHED stone-built village house located in Kili Paphos. Consists of 3 large rooms 1 small. Traditional wood burnt fireplace, fully tiled secluded yard and garage. Tel: 99210610. *****************************

PROPERTY FOR SALE NICOSIA ***************************** NICOSIA, FLAT FOR SALE: 2 bedroom flat with title deeds, 110 sqm, fully renovated, best central area, 800m from the european university,excellent view, eu 99,000. Tel 99 621914 *****************************

PAPHOS ***************************** BARGAIN OFFER Chlorakas, 2 bedroom apartment, large veranda, very quiet location, communal pool, sea view, €75.000 o.n.o please call: 99699019 /26910140 ***************************** PAPHOS, FLATS FOR SALE OR RENT: kissonerga, 3 bedroom flat with title deeds, in a block of 4 flats only, fully renovated, 2 baths, 146 sqm closed area, ch, ac, covered parking, excellent view of sea and mountains, half registration fees till 31.12.12.Reduced to eu 135,000,or rent eu 450 pm. Tel 99 621914 *****************************

EURO 6.95 !!!

VERY LOW PRICES !

• OPEN FOR CHRISTMAS DAY LUNCH & NEW YEAR’S EVE CALL PETER NOW FOR ANY ENQUIRIES: 96870774 – PAPHOS

***************************** FOR SALE special offer, €79, 000 first floor apartment in Protaras, fully furnished with 2 bedrooms and a swimming pool. Walking distance to the beach of Ayia Triada and all amenities. Tel: 97 608941. *****************************

FAMAGUSTA ***************************** AYIA NAPA, studio for sale, 38 sqm, furnished and fully renovated, with title deed, in licensed complex, 500m from nissi beach, eu 49,000, tel. 99 621914

Nicosia ........................22 802 020 Limassol ......................25 805 050 Larnaca .......................24 804 040 Paphos ........................26 806 060 Famagusta ..................23 803 030

Nicosia General .............22-801400 Nicosia Makarios ...........22-405000 Limassol Old ................25-305333 Limassol New ................25-801100 Larnaca Old...................24-630312 Larnaca New .................24-630300 Paphos ..........................26-821800 Famagusta ....................23-821211

Rescue Co-ordination Centre ............................. 1441 (Immediate Response Service for Aeronautical or Maritime Accident & Incidents)

• BOOKINGS FOR PRIVATE PARTIES AVAILABLE AT

***************************** UNIVERSAL AREA, 3 bedroom detached villa, covered area 122 sqm, master bedroom ensuite, air conditioned throughout, all white goods, solar panels, garden irrigation, plot size 273 sqm, communal pool, euro 165.000 o.v.n.o.

– title deeds available Call : 99682644- no agents

HOSPITALS ........ 1400

GOOD HOME COOKING- RUN BY FAMILY-ESTABLISHED 1988

• SUNDAY ROAST LUNCH & DINNER FOR ONLY

***************************** Chlorakas, 2 bedroom townhouse. Exceptional sea views.

New kitchen, bedrooms and bathroom. Private parking, On mains sewage system. Communal pool. A/C, quality fixtures. Fully furnished. Security barrier. FULL TITLE DEEDS Now €92,000 Call 99716390.

POLICE DIVISION HQ

Drug Law Enforcement Unit ......................................... 1498 (Confidential Information)

• OPEN ALL WINTER 7 DAYS A WEEK !

***************************** 1 BEDROOM APARTMENT, TOMBS OF KINGS AREA, close to the sea, large private roof terrace with electric and water, covered parking, veranda, furnished, swimming pool. Full TITLE DEEDS, was €95,000 reduced to €65,000.

U SEFUL PHONE NUMBERS

THE DEVONSHIRE RESTAURANT

• BE ASTOUNDED BY OUR LOW WINTER PRICES !

***************************** PAPHOS 1 bedroom apartment, fantastic central location, lounge/kitchen, bathroom, veranda, covered parking, communal pool, Furnished. Near all amenities. TITLE DEEDS NOW REDUCED €45,000.

Game Fund Service: (Wildlife and hunting) Central offices (Nicosia): 22867786, 22-867897 Nicosia: 22-664606, 99-445697 Limassol: 25-343800, 99-445728, Larnaca/Famagusta: 24-805128, 99-634325 Paphos: 26-306211, 99-445679

Narcotics Helpline ......... 1410 (Outside hours.............. 22304160) AIDS Advisory Bureau ................................ 22-302826 Domestic Violence Centre .......................................... 1440 (Emergency Centre for Victims) Drug Info & Poison Control ............... 1401 Cyprus Samaritans ... 77777267 Police Duty Officer ......... 1499 (Confidential Information)

Forest Fires ..................... 1407 Airports Larnaca ..........................77778833 Paphos ...........................77778833

27

CYPRUS MAIL Saturday, December 22, 2012

Advertiser FOR PAPHIAKOS ANIMAL WELFARE SOS HELPLINE, 24 HOUR MEDICAL EMERGENCY SERVICE - CALL 99655581 CONTACT DETAILS FOR PAPHIAKOS. Paphiakos & C.C.P. Animal Welfare Education/Information Centre, No. 12 Dedalos Building, 8049 Kato Paphos PO Box 61272 8132 Kato Paphos Web. www.cyprusanimalwelfare.com www.facebook/paphiakos Email info@cyprusanimalwelfare.com Larnaca Emergency Service - The contact point for animal emergencies in Larnaca is Maria at the Paphiakos Animal Welfare Charity Shop, telephone 24623494 or 99325897 STOP, SHOP AND GIVE TO THE ANIMALS! ALL DONATIONS ARE WELCOME AT OUR CHARITY SHOPS! PAPHIAKOS & C.C.P. ANIMAL WELFARE Registered Charity No 1529 Contact our shops and we can take your clutter The Charity Shops are located at: Shop No.1 Agapinoros Street, Kato Paphos Tel 26910325 Shop No.2 Ap Pavlou Avenue, Kato Paphos Tel 26942894 Shop No.3 Gr. Afxentiou Avensia Court 3 Larnaca 24623494 Shop No.4 9 Ayiou Ioanni Street 3061 Limassol 25561695 Peyia Information Centre & Shop & T Rooms 26622828 Polis Information Centre & Shop & T Rooms 99223572 Book Exchange Shop Trimithousa 99771763 Our shops are always happy to receive your unwanted goods!

NOW YOU CAN HELP BY COLLECTING YOUR ALUMINIUM CANS AND HANDING THEM IN AT ANY PAPHIAKOS CHARITY SHOP OR THE CLINIC. SAVE AN ANIMAL AND SAVE THE ENVIRONMENT!!

PAPHIAKOS CAR BOOT SALE EVERY SATURDAY at the Ambassador Restaurant and outside in the grounds at Paphiakos. Free parking. Sellers from 7am, buyers from 8am. For information & bookings please call MIKE on 96702600.

FORTHCOMING EVENTS FOR PAPHIAKOS CHARITY NO. 1529 WORLD ANIMAL DAY. On Thursday October 4th Paphiakos will be micro chipping pets for only €20 including all the paperwork. For further information telephone 26953496.

To celebrate World Animal Day on Thursday October 4th Paphiakos will be offering free spaying/neutering for all feral and unwanted animals as they do throughout the year. Contact 26953496 for further details.

PAPHIAKOS SHELTER OPEN DAY The Open Day will be held on Sunday October 7th between 10am and 3pm. It will be a Family Fun Day out with a lot of different activities. There is car parking, toilets and refreshments on site so enjoy and join in the celebration of animals and what they bring to our lives. Entrance is €2 CHARITY HAIR CUT. On Thursday 4th October 09.30-17.30 without an appointment Andri at Atlantic Bay Hotel (2nd Floor) will be charging €5 for a haircut with all proceeds going to Paphiakos. Telephone Suzanne on 99151996 or Andri on 99604783.

PAPHIAKOS CHRISTMAS BAZAAR. Saturday November 24th 9am – 3pm at the Crazy Spoon Restaurant. For further details contact 99151996. Stalls, Santa’s Grotto, Donkey Rides, Pirate Pat and many more.

SATURDAY SERVICES NICOSIA St Paul’s Church Hall, Byron Ave LIMASSOL ‘Meeting Point’, 193A Christodoulou H’pavlou, opp Molos Park on beach rd BIBLE STUDY FOR ADULTS & CHILDREN 10.00 am Nicosia • 10.30 am Limassol FAMILY WORSHIP SERVICE 11.30 am Nicosia • 11.45 am Limassol Pastor: Branislav Mirilov 96702349 Info: Nsia 96207014 • Lsol 99322614 www.adventist.org | www.hopetv.org

AYIA NAPA and DHERYNIA (Anglican Church in S.E Cyprus) Sunday Worship 9.30am Morning Prayer every Sunday morning at St Constantinos & Eleni Chapel, Dherynia (near Hospital in Dherynia) 11am at Scandinavian Church, off Nissi Avenue (opp Tassia Maris Hotel), Ayia Napa nd 6pm at St Constantinos & Eleni (2 week) Chaplain : Revd Simon Holloway M.A. Tel: 97 839349 www.angsecyp.org Visitors especially welcome

28

Saturday, December 22, 2012 CYPRUS MAIL

Sport Superstar LeBron shines brightest on every stage

IN BRIEF NHL closer to season cancellation

American wins NBA title and Olympic gold

By Frank Pingue LEBRON James finally captured an elusive National Basketball Association title to cap a year where he silenced his critics and shared the spotlight with some unlikely players.

‘Linsanity’ became one of the new buzzwords in the NBA while a collegiate player took a sledgehammer to the record books and the Los Angeles Lakers made a blockbuster trade that rekindled memories of the team’s ‘Showtime’ era.

James, long considered the NBA’s heir apparent to Hall of Famer Michael Jordan, finally delivered a performance worthy of that status with a championship in his ninth season, followed by a gold medal with the United States at the London Olympics.

A dominant force on the court, James had already earned the NBA’s scoring title, Most Valuable Player honors and All-Star nods, but it took an elusive title, MVP honours for the regular season and NBA Finals to prove his detractors wrong.

The self proclaimed ‘King James’ became a player many NBA fans love to hate after going on national television in 2010 to announce his much-publicised move to

Miami, but there is no denying his status as one of the game’s greatest players.

“It was the hardest thing I’ve ever done as a basketball player,” James said after winning the NBA title in June, beating Oklahoma City in the finals. “You just put a lot of hard work into it and you hope that one day it will pay off for you.”

Basketball’s marquee names were forced to share the limelight with undrafted Taiwanese-American Jeremy Lin, who went from an unknown to an overnight sensation after being thrust into the New York Knicks’ starting lineup in February.

Lin burst onto the public consciousness after a masterful series of dynamic displays, scoring at least 20 points in nine of 10 games during a season-high seven-game win streak for the Knicks that sparked the ‘Linsanity’ craze around the globe.

Lin’s incredible run was undone by a late-season injury but that did not stop Time Magazine from naming him as one of the world’s 100 most influential people.

He was the only basketball player on a list that included President Barack Obama and billionaire investor Warren Buffet.

At the London Games, a star-studded American team led by James were one of the

hottest favorites but were tested by an inspired Spain team before prevailing 107100 in the gold-medal game to retain their Olympic title.

The Lakers were the biggest story during the NBA’s offseason after landing Dwight Howard in a 12-player trade that rekindled memories of the team’s ‘Showtime’ era from 1979-1989 with Hall of Famers Magic Johnson and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.

Howard, a three-time defensive player of the year, joined a Lakers team that was already bursting with talent in the form of Kobe Bryant and Spain’s Pau Gasol and still revelling in the acquisition of two-time league MVP Steve Nash a month earlier.

Some of the year’s top stories even came from outside the professional ranks as Jack Taylor, a sophomore guard at Iowa’s Grinnell College, shattered the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) scoring record with a 138-point performance in a Division III game.

The 22-year-old guard from Iowa’s Grinnell College, drew national attention for his performance, which shattered the previous record of 113 points set in 1954.

“That’s crazy,” said fivetime NBA champion Bryant, “I don’t care what level you’re at, you score 138 points, it’s pretty insane.”

‘King James’ silenced his critics in a great year

England hoping happy memories can inspire them

By David Clough

Glory: England celebrate their 2-1 Test series win in India after ending a 28-year wait

ENGLAND will today conclude their tour of India, and 2012 schedule, with a return to the scene of one of their most treasured triumphs.

The second and final Twenty20 International, following Thursday night’s five-wicket defeat in Pune, will take place at Mumbai’s Wankhede Stadium - where England famously levelled the Test series last month on their way to an historic 2-1 victory.

When the Twenty20 specialists run out there for the last stop of the two-month tour, however, there will be just one survivor from the team which beat India by 10 wickets in the second Test.

A clutch of Test regulars were rested for these Twenty20s; then captain Stuart Broad also had to go home early because of injury - and after Jonny Bairstow flew to England ahead of schedule yesterday for family reasons, all-rounder Samit Patel is the last man standing.

Of the Test squad, only Tim Bresnan also remains but he was not part of a two-man pace attack in Mumbai.

A significant first-choice contingent from

England’s failed defence of their ICC World Twenty20 squad is absent.

But opener Alex Hales was involved in that Sri Lanka campaign, and was back to form on Thursday with a 26-ball half-century at the top of the order in Pune.

England’s joint record-holder for their highest Twenty20 score - he and Luke Wright have both made 99 in the past year - could not press on to anything quite so substantial at the Subrata Roy Sahara Stadium.

Eoin Morgan’s team then fell short on a good batting surface, and India coasted to victory.

“Obviously it was disappointing not to get off to a winning start,” said Hales.

“But there were a lot of positives to take from the game, and I think we’re going to bounce back well on Saturday.”

He cited the performances of Jos Buttler - with a career-best 33 not out - and then skiddy fast bowler Stuart Meaker on debut as reasons to believe England can still level this short series.

“We got off to a good start, and Jos came in at the end and showed what he can do and how destructive he can be towards the end of the innings.

“I thought Stuart bowled excellently on his debut as well.”

THE National Hockey League (NHL) moved closer to calling off the entire 2012-13 season after canceling all games through January 14 on Thursday due to a bitter labour dispute with players.

The widely-expected decision brought the total number of lost regular season games to 625, or 50.8 percent of the season, the NHL said in a brief statement.

With no talks scheduled between the two sides, who have not met face-toface since December 13 when negotiations involving US federal mediators failed to kickstart the process, hopes of salvaging a season were fading quickly.

The NHL, which normally runs an 82-game regular season, has previously said teams would need to play at least 48 games to forge a legitimate season. That meant a new deal must be reached by mid-January to ensure the Stanley Cup playoffs end in June.

Key sticking points in the dispute, which began when the NHL locked out players in September, revolved around the length of a new contract, rules governing term limits on contracts and the transition rules to help teams get under the salary cap.

There were also a handful of smaller issues yet to be agreed upon, most notably the continued participation of NHLplayers in the Olympics and rules governing drug testing.

Zvonareva to miss Open FORMER world number two Vera Zvonareva of Russia has pulled out of the Australian Open with a shoulder injury, organisers of the opening grand slam of the season said yesterday.

“Sorry to report that Vera Zvonareva has withdrawn from the AO due to a continuing right shoulder injury,” organisers of the January 14-27 event said on their Twitter account.

The injury-prone 28-yearold 2010 Wimbledon and US Open finalist will also miss the Auckland Classic starting on December 31.

Tournament director Karl Budge lamented world number 96 Zvonareva’s last minute withdrawal but insisted the Auckland tournament still enjoyed a strong field.

CYPRUS MAIL Saturday, December 22, 2012

29

Sport YouTube video wins kicker tryout with NY Jets

By Philip O’Connor

Leading trio: (left to right) Lewis Hamilton, Sebastian Vettel and Fernando Alonso are considered to be the best three drivers on the Formula 1 grid

Ferrari favour Vettel instead of Hamilton as future lead driver ‘We have the best in terms of speed, intelligence in the race and capability’ FERRARI say they would choose Sebastian Vettel over Lewis Hamilton if they needed to appoint a new lead driver.

The company’s president, Luca Di Montezemolo, said he believed Ferrari’s current driver Fernando Alonso was the best in Formula 1.

But the Italian added that Vettel, 25, “would be very good for us”.

“Between all the drivers, Vettel and Hamilton could be perfect for Ferrari in the future, with one difference -

Vettel is younger,” he said.

“First of all, of all the drivers, we have the best - in terms of speed, intelligence in the race, and a capability to work with the team.

“When you have the best driver you have to put him in the best condition to succeed, to win and have a good environment without peer troubles.

“But if Alonso decided to go to live in Hawaii with the girlfriend, I have no doubt that for human and professional reasons I would

choose Vettel. He would be very good for us.

“I like Vettel, because he is not presumptuous. He wants to win but he is not arrogant. Michael Schumacher told me many years ago that coming from karts, Vettel had the most potential of any young driver and he was right.”

After finishing fourth in the 2012 drivers’ standings in 2012 - 91 points behind Germany’s Vettel - McLaren’s former world champion Hamilton, 27, will instead

line up for Mercedes next season.

Di Montezemolo, 65, said 31-year-old Spaniard Alonso, who narrowly lost out to Red Bull’s Vettel in this year’s championship despite having an inferior car, was a powerful mix of the good qualities of two great Ferrari champions - Niki Lauda and Michael Schumacher.

“Niki was very intelligent in the race and the first driver to be closer to the team, details, working even in the night,” he said.

“Michael was, for me, a war machine in the race because he was in condition to do 60 laps like qualifying.

“Fernando is a good mix between the two. He is very intelligent. He knows when to push, how to save the tyres, when to attack, super intelligent and super quick, too.

“It is difficult to make comparisons across different eras but he is right at the top. But I’m very happy with Fernando. He is a key member of the team.”

Khan keen to make amends

By Phil Medlicott

Amir Khan (left) got back to winning ways last weekend

AMIR Khan is confident there will be no repeat of the mistakes he made the first time around against Danny Garcia in the rematch he hopes can be arranged for late 2013.

Khan returned to winning ways last weekend with a 10th-round stoppage triumph over Carlos Molina in Los Angeles, five months after losing his WBA light-welterweight title to WBC champion Garcia in Las Vegas.

In that defeat - his second in a row following a controversial points loss to Lamont Peterson in December 2011 - the 26-year-old Bolton fighter was knocked to the floor three times en route to a fourth-round stoppage.

He subsequently switched trainers from Freddie Roach

to Virgil Hunter.

Khan feels he has already improved with Hunter in his corner and is sure if he does get his wish to enter the ring with Garcia again, he will not be susceptible to the same errors he made when they previously clashed.

Reflecting on the fight in July, Khan told Press Association Sport: “I was beating Garcia convincingly and then got caught with a shot - I think I was beating him more easily for the first two or three rounds than I was Molina.

“I believe in myself in that fight. I got caught by a shot I shouldn’t have been caught by.

“Maybe I was too confident, thinking I was untouchable and that no-one could hurt me.

“But it is all about regrouping myself and I will be back stronger now.

“My new trainer is going to help me a lot - I already see a change in my style.

“We are not going to make these mistakes again and we are not going to be giving opponents a chance now.”

Having beaten Molina, Khan is targeting April for his next bout and wants another showdown with Philadelphian Garcia to follow later in 2013.

Garcia has indicated his willingness to fight the Briton again if a satisfactory deal can be struck, but a reluctance for it to happen in England.

“The next fight is going to be around April time,” Khan said.

“That will give me a nice little break. Then I want to be back in the ring again and then trying for the rematch with Danny Garcia.

“Next year should be a very good year for me.”

A NORWEGIAN whose YouTube clip of spectacular trick shots has been watched over half a million times could be on the verge of a National Football League (NFL) contract as a kicker.

The video caught the attention of professional teams in the United States, and Norwegian state broadcaster NRK has reported that its star, Havard Rugland, had a tryout for the NFL’s New York Jets this week.

“It went well,” Rugland told NRK. “They tested me on field goals and kickoffs.

Obviously you feel a little more pressure here, but I stayed pretty calm.”

The video shows the 27year-old performing some outrageous tricks and kicks, from nailing 60-yard field goals to football-style scissor kicks and volleys with American footballs.

Made by Rugland, his brother and some friends, the video has spread rapidly on the Internet, clocking up over half a million hits and garnering interest from three US colleges and the Jets.

Rugland has no prior American football experience but kicking coach Michael Husted says that if he continues to develop, he could reach the NFL. “Havard has incredible talent as a kicker,” Husted, who played nine seasons as an NFL kicker, told the Seattle Post-Intelligencer newspaper. “He has a cannon for a leg. As he continues to refine his technique, he could be one of the strongest kickers in the NFL.” Husted says he became aware of Rugland via the YouTube video, and that he was asked to bring the kicker to San Diego to prepare him for a trial with an NFL team.

“A general manager from an NFL team contacted me about Havard. He wanted Havard to come to train with me in San Diego before they were going to fly him in for a workout.”

“He reminds me a lot of Sebastian Janikowski in terms of stature and strength,” coach Husted said, drawing a parallel between Rugland and the Oakland Raiders’ Polish placekicker.

Harvard has quickly gone from practicing on his own in his hometown of Aalgaard in southern Norway to being prepared for tryouts with teams in the game’s biggest league.

“On this trip things have evolved rapidly, from just training alone to training to try out for a team. From where I am now, playing in the NFL is a long way to go, but my goal is to get a contract before the preparations begin for next season,” says Rugland.

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Saturday, December 22, 2012 CYPRUS MAIL

Sport Marseille ‘must use home advantage’

By Gregory Blachier

No love lost: Jose Mourinho (right) succeeded Manuel Pellegrini in the Bernabeu hot seat with the two managers having exchanged insults

The engineer can put a big spanner in Mourinho’s works

By Mark Elkington MALAGA coach Manuel Pellegrini has the chance to put the future of the man who replaced him at Real Madrid under the microscope if his team beat Jose Mourinho’s misfiring side when they visit today.

Real’s surprise 2-2 draw at home to lowly Espanyol on Sunday left them four points behind second-placed Atletico Madrid and a whopping 13 adrift of unbeaten leaders Barcelona after only 16 games.

The champions have already dropped more points than they did in the whole of last year’s record-breaking championship campaign and a deflated Mourinho said af-

Real under pressure ahead of Malaga clash ter the Espanyol game that the title was “almost impossible now.”

Last Saturday, Real president Florentino Perez, who brought Mourinho to the club in 2010, backed his Portuguese coach to the hilt but on Monday he fired out what sounded like a rebuke.

“Real Madrid has a sporting principle that one should never give up, however difficult the challenge,” he said at a club event.

Perez and Real’s fans have a notorious shortage of patience and a failure to win would have the vultures circling going into the two-week

winter break, with their desire to win the Champions League the main reason for holding off more drastic action until later in the campaign.

Pellegrini knows Mourinho’s situation all too well.

In his trophyless year at the Bernabeu in the 2009-10 season he set a then club record tally of 96 points in La Liga only to finish second behind Pep Guardiola’s Barca, and he was unceremoniously ditched in favour of Mourinho.

The calm, silver-haired Chilean, known as ‘The Engineer’, is a striking contrast to his brash, outspoken succes-

sor and there is little love lost between the two.

Mourinho’s belittling dig at Pellegrini a year ago, when he said he would never go and coach a team like Malaga but would instead leave Real to go and take the helm at a big club in England or Italy, did little to endear him to the locals either.

Pellegrini has stuck to his guns, however, and guided them to fourth in La Liga last season, their highest ever finish which earned them a first ever shot at the Champions League.

Malaga’s attractive passing game and solid defence, cur-

rently the tightest in La Liga, has put them in fourth, five points behind Mourinho’s team.

Real have struggled on the road and have striker concerns with Gonzalo Higuain still sidelined while out-ofform Karim Benzema is a doubt with a foot problem.

The game throws up a clash of styles just when Mourinho’s counter-attacking tactics are being questioned the most.

“Madrid cannot be a team who runs behind the ball.. with players of that category and standing,” Pellegrini said in a recent interview.

“I don’t like coaches who are only interested in results.

The concepts of spectacle and creativity are fundamental to me.”

Controversy looms over Serie A weekend fixtures

By Terry Daley

It’s been a bad week for Napoli boss Walter Mazzari as his side lost twice to Bologna and were deducted two points

OFF-FIELD controversy will again cast a shadow over the final weekend of Serie A matches before the winter break with Napoli reeling after being docked points over match-fixing and Cagliari’s stadium problems threatening their existence in the top flight.

Walter Mazzari’s Napoli should get their season back on track on Sunday afternoon at bottom club Siena.

Napoli now find themselves in fifth place, 10 points behind champions Juventus and fighting for a Champions League place rather than the title.

But Siena could fancy their chances against Napoli, who threw away a lead to lose against Bologna at home twice in three days, and will want to impress their new

boss Giuseppe Iachini.

For Antonio Conte and league leaders Juventus, things could hardly be going any better.

Not only are they six points ahead of their nearest challengers Inter Milan, but their other serious rival was effectively ruled out of the race and they even benefited from the week’s other controversy when their match at Cagliari last night was moved to Parma.

The only problem facing Juve is Giorgio Chiellini being ruled out for up to two months with a calf injury.

However, considering only Pescara have scored fewer goals than Cagliari this season, not many would bet on them getting a result against the champions.

The real losers, however, will be Cagliari’s long-suffering supporters, 15,000 of whom had bought tickets for

the match at the Is Arenas stadium, as their club battles with local authorities over the safety of their stadium.

Fans of the Sardinian club again face the prospect of watching their club’s home games being played on the Italian mainland, which could have a big impact on their fight against relegation.

The six teams pursuing Juventus are fighting over European places and AS Roma play AC Milan in Rome tonight.

Milan had a dismal start to the season with speculation about Massimiliano Allegri’s future dominating Italian media.

But they are unbeaten in their last five matches, a run that has seen them pull back from two goals down to draw at Napoli and inflict Juventus’s second defeat of the season.

MARSEILLE could be top of Ligue 1 if they had not collapsed in their last two home games, striker AndrePierre Gignac said, warning his team mates that they could not afford any more home losses.

Third-placed Marseille, tied on 35 points with leaders Paris St Germain, host eighth-ranked St Etienne on Sunday having won one of their last five home league games.

While they have the French league’s best away record with seven victories from ten games, including the last three, they were thrashed 4-1 by Lyon and 3-0 by Lorient in their last two home encounters.

“We should have more points. We collapsed in some games. I can’t explain that,” Gignac, who scored a superb goal to earn his side a 1-0 win at Toulouse last weekend, told the club website.

Even if we lose, we have to fight...we can’t afford to collapse like that.”

Marseille have one of the worst defensive records at home with 12 goals conceded in eight games but in-form playmaker Mathieu Valbuena said they could improve.

“We can produce great performances at home. There’s is no ‘Velodrome’ syndrome,” he told reporters.

“We just have to be more consistent.”

Sunday’s game could be the ideal occasion for a home recovery as St Etienne have endured a 500-minutes goal drought and have lost two of their last three league matches.

Their poor run started against neighbours Olympique Lyon who will rekindle bad memories today when former coach Claude Puel arrives with his current side Nice, who are fifth in the standings, six points behind their hosts.

Puel was fired after a threeyear spell during which he failed to win a single trophy despite taking charge of a club who were seven-time defending champions when he was appointed in 2008.

Lyon president Jean-Michel Aulas, whose club won the French Cup last season under new coach Remi Garde, had harsh words about Puel ahead of the game.

“Puel was our coach for three years, and they were not good times for Lyon and our fans. He left on bad terms, with the whole footballcommunity having a bad opinion of him,” Aulas said.

Leaders Paris St Germain, ahead of Lyon and Marseille on goal difference, had the chance to consolidate their first place before the winter break if they won at midtable Stade Brest last night.

Champions Montpellier will aim to extend their winning run to a fourth game when they visit Lille today.

CYPRUS MAIL Saturday, December 22, 2012

31

Sport

‘Villa loss a cautionary tale’ Liverpool boss Rodgers aims to bounce back quickly

By Nemanja Bjedov

By Carl Markham LIVERPOOL manager Brendan Rodgers believes his players were served a dose of reality this week and he hopes they have learned they cannot afford to be the slightest bit complacent.

An unexpected 3-1 defeat to Aston Villa last weekend was the Reds’ worst display of the season and killed any momentum the team had going into the festive period.

As a result they have slipped seven points off the pace for Champions League qualification and with a packed schedule coming up Rodgers is keen for his side to swiftly address the issue.

“What has come to Liverpool is realism and where we are at and it’s been great for the mentality of the players,” he said.

“Our learning from it (the Villa defeat) was that no game is easy in this division.

“The comfort with which we were playing and the opportunities we created in the first 25 minutes would maybe have made you think we were going to get the result - it’s very easily done.

“It is great learning that you can’t afford to think like that, you have to keep pushing.

“We now need to make sure the performances, our focus and concentration is very high no matter who the opponent and we get what we want from the games.

Cypriot clubs gear up for final weekend of 2012

An unexpected 3-1 defeat to Aston Villa last weekend was the Reds’ worst display of the season and killed any momentum the team had going into the festive period “If you go into the game with any complacency or pre-conceived idea that it’s going to be a stroll then you’ll fall flat on your face.

“The reaction of the players has been first class their willingness to put it right and get three points this weekend is very high and I’ve seen that in training.”

The visit of Fulham tomorrow evening signals a sequence of five matches in 16 days but Rodgers has warned his players they cannot afford to think they can ease up.

He said they should not even consider protecting themselves for the forth-

coming run as that was a decision for him and his backroom team.

“I always focus the players on the next game,” he said.

“It is our job to maybe look at the teams in advance of the games as it’s obviously a busy period and the players are human beings.

“You have to prepare the teams and look at the physical recovery in between but that is for the staff and the management to do that.

“The players’ focus is purely on the next game because it is irrelevant what will happen at Stoke and QPR, you have to take care of Fulham.”

Prior to last weekend’s

matches Liverpool had the chance to move within two points of fourth place, which would have been some achievement after their worst start to a season for over a century.

That they did not achieve it could have been down to the added pressure which came with that situation.

But Rodgers stressed that was something the squad should be used to.

“The main reason why I came here was the expectancy to win things and that’s something that we’ll fight for,” he said.

“There’s always expectancy here - it’s one of the biggest clubs in world football.

“Probably for the first time at Anfield there was an expectancy of us to get the result - which there should be because we’re playing at home.

“But you can’t ever get too far ahead.

“We were going along nicely and we’re still in a position where we can achieve our objectives and that’s the most important thing.

“We’ve been reasonably consistent and climbing the table steadily, rather than quickly and now the focus is on making sure we’re at our best.

“If we can do that we’ll gain more points than we drop.”

Toure wins African prize again

By Mark Gleeson

Yaya Toure (left) beat Didier Drogba to the award

MANCHESTER City’s Yaya Toure won the African Footballer of the Year award for a second successive time, holding off a strong challenge from compatriot and Ivory Coast captain Didier Drogba.

The 29-year-old midfielder topped the annual poll of African national team coaches and technical directors to add to the award he won in 2011.

Toure played a pivotal role for both club and country, helping Ivory Coast to the African Nations Cup final in February and then playing a big part in taking Manchester City to the Premier League title in a dramatic season finale.

“Toure’s immense contribution in helping Manchester City win their first domestic championship in 44 years saw him pick up Africa’s most prestigious individual award,” said the citation from the Confederation of African Football, who did not release the tally of votes.

He was also a goal scorer in August’s FA Community Shield against Chelsea, won 3-2

by City, and helped the Ivorians easily past a strong Senegal side in Nations Cup qualification in September and October.

Voters picked him ahead of sentimental favourite Drogba, whose dramatic celebrations after converting the decisive penalty for Chelsea against Bayern Munich in the Champions League final were among the abiding images of the footballing year.

Winning the Champions League completed a full sweep of trophy success at club level with Chelsea for Drogba but also heightened the drama of just three months earlier when he missed a penalty for the Ivory Coast in the Nations Cup final.

Drogba led his side on a seemingly unstoppable march to the final in Libreville, where they were runaway favourites, but he ballooned over the crossbar a second half penalty that would have won Ivory Coast a prize that has consistently eluded them.

Instead Zambia went on to win in post-match shootout although Drogba, who signed a twoand-a-half year deal with Chinese side Shanghai Shenhua in June, won praise for bravely again stepping up to take a kick and scoring.

Drogba’s other achievement of the year was to become the first player to score in four separate FA Cup finals when Chelsea beat Liverpool at Wembley.

Third in the voting was Cameroon midfielder Alex Song.

CYPRIOT football clubs will play their final matches of the year in Round 15 of the national championship this weekend before a well-earned ten-day winter break.

Second-placed APOEL head to Larnaca this afternoon where they will face in-form Doxa Katokopia at 6pm, while at the same time Omonia host Ethnikos Achnas.

“This is our last match of the year. Doxa are on a very good run and have only lost once in six games to AEL in Limassol, in the last round.

“We have to take them seriously as otherwise we could have a difficult afternoon,” said APOEL coach Ivan Jovanovic.

“They have a lot of experienced and quality players who play with enthusiasm so their results are not just random. We will try to finish the year on a positive note and in order to do that we have win this match,” concluded Jovanovic who cannot count on long-term injury absentees Christos Karipidis, Mario Budimir, Esteban Solari and Francisco Zuela, while Athos Solomou will have a late fitness test after picking up a viral infection. Michael Klukowski and Aritz Borda should be available for selection.

Toni Savevski’s Omonia host Ethnikos Achnas and the experienced coach has only 13 senior players available for the match: “We have ahead of us the last game in this half of the season and hopefully we will get all three points.

Ethnikos are a good side and their current league standing does not really correspond to their performances,” he said.

“We must be very careful as the festive days are coming and people usually tend to relax too much at this time of year. What we need to do is to stay focused and claim another victory as I hope we can keep our winning streak going,” added Savevski whose team are currently on a four-match winning streak.

Dimitris Christofi and Charalambos Kyriakou should be available, but Georgios Efrem, Andreas Avraam and Bruno Aguiar are all doubtful. Joao Paulo Andrade and Yuval Spungin have been following a special training regime and if Andrade does not make it in time his place will probably be taken by Rasheed Alabi.

Elsewhere, Apollon host AEK at the Tsirion Stadium in Limassol at 6pm, while an hour later Alki take on AEK. On Sunday afternoon at 5pm Nea Salamina face AEP Paphos, while Enosis Neon Paralimni host league leaders Anorthosis at 6pm and Olympiakos await Ayia Napa.

Saturday, December 22, 2012 CYPRUS MAIL

32 Superstar LeBron shines brightest on every stage 28

Sport

Rodgers: Villa loss a cautionary tale 31

Reinvigorated Arsenal kick-off festive feast

UEFA chiefs were astonished when the Champions League draw was made on Thursday when they saw which teams were paired together.

In an extraordinary twist, the draw ended up being exactly the same as the fixtures pulled out during the dress rehearsal.

Although the order in which the ties were drawn was different, the pairings were identical.

Football statisticians have been arguing over the odds of such an occurrence happening.

The mathematics are complicated because of rules preventing teams from the same nations competing, or clubs facing rivals from their own group stage from that year’s tournament.

The order in which teams are pulled out also then effects the probability of later fixtures occurring.

39 top-flight matches crammed into the next two weeks

By Martyn Herman

T

HE first offering of a 12-day Premier League feast is served up today when Arsenal travel to Wigan Athletic for a clash involving two of the country’s most unpredictable teams.

With 39 top flight matches crammed into the holiday period the next two weeks will offer some telling clues into what is turning into a two-horse title race between Manchester United and Manchester City and the survival scrap involving several sides at the wrong end of the table.

For Arsenal, it promises some much needed festive cheer in a season that has so far been as disappointing as the Christmas cracker jokes that do the rounds over the dinner table.

Their chronic lack of consistency is encapsulated by a month that began with them being booed off after a 2-0 home defeat by Swansea City, hit rock bottom in a League Cup exit at League Two Bradford City and continued this week with Santi Cazorla scoring a hat-trick in an uplifting 5-2 romp at Reading.

Monday’s win muted the growing grumblings of discontent in north London but the season of goodwill could quickly turn sour if the Gunners fail to build on it at third from bottom Wigan (2.45pm).

Victory, however, would send Arsene Wenger’s side temporarily into third place and launch them into a holiday fixture schedule eased by the postponement of the Boxing Day derby against West Ham United because of a Tube strike.

“We now go to Wigan. It’s another difficult place but we can do well again. Hopefully we’ll get some confidence from the Reading game,” said Wenger.

While it will take more than one emphatic win against a bottom-of-the-table side whose defence did an impressive vanishing act to restore the faith of frustrated Arsenal fans, the performances

Draw throws up freakish repeat of dress rehearsal

EXTREME ODDS

We’re back: the Gunners have been under fire for much of the season following a poor run of results but have looked better in recent games and will be hoping for some much needed festive cheer of Cazorla, Jack Wilshere, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Theo Walcott were encouraging signs.

A 15-point gap to Premier League leaders Manchester United already makes a title challenge a forlorn hope, but Arsenal still look capable of putting together a run that would at least cement them p four come N ew in the top New Year. now the games “We know ck and fast over come thick ristmas the Christmas said period,” ChamOxlade-Chamwho berlain ed by was joined Wilshere, Welsh midfielder amsey and EngAaron Ramsey fenders Kieran land defenders d Carl Jenkinson Gibbs and in signing new long-term contracts on Wednesday. eally important “It’s a really period for everyone in the eague and if you Premier League g tocan string ood gether a good number of d results and ts on the get points n it stands you in table, then d for the run-in to good stead the end off the season.” ave managed only Wigan have one win in seven matches

since a shock 1-0 triumph at Tottenham Hotspur in early November, but on their day Roberto Martinez’s team can prove a handful.

They won 2-1 at Arsenal last season and effectively ended Arsenal’s title hopes with a 3-2 home victory in 2010. g Aguero g ((below left) Sergio andCarlos Tevez will b be salivating at the prospect of a visit from Reading as champions Manc n Manchester City play their

final home ga game of an epic year, a almost three years tto the day since R Roberto Mancini re replaced M Ma rk Hughe Mark Hughes as coach.

City’s 3737-match unbeaten P Premier League run at home was ended by United in the pr previous match at th the Etihad Stadium but Reading’s prospects appear about

as bright as a Christmas turkey against a side desperate to close the six-point gap to United who are away at Swansea City tomorrow (3.30pm).

United are in free-flowing goal-scoring form, having netted ten times in their last three Premier League games, and Sir Alex Ferguson’s side tising fixhave an appetising ture list overr the holiday pe-me riod with home games againstt Newcastle d United and West Bromwich Albion to follow theirr visit to Wales. lly “We usually get ourselves to the New Yearr in tion a good position ere and that’s where e,” we want to be,” old Ferguson told bUnited’s webmasite (www.manutd.com). ed Third-placed ho Chelsea, who nitbeat Leeds Unitital ed in the Capital ue) One (League) nesCup on Wednessing day after losing

the Club World Cup final last weekend, must wait until Sunday (6pm) to return to Premier League action when they host a struggling Aston Villa side buoyed by a 3-1 victory at Liverpool last weekend.

Fourth-placed Tottenham Hotspur can move above Chelsea if they av avoid defeat at home to Stoke City today (5pm).

Sixth-placed Ev Everton are also eyeing a retu return to the top four, although they will be without the s suspended Marouane Fellain Fellaini as they take on W West ham U United at U Upton Park th this afternoo noon (5pm).

At the bottom, Qu Queens Park Rangers, w who gained their first win of the season last weeken weekend against Fulham and are unbeaten in four matches u under new manager Harry R Redknapp, will look to cont continue their escape bid at slid sliding Newcastle United toda today (5pm).

Catch us if you can: the two Manchester clubs have pulled away at the top

Bookmakers would have offered odds of 5,000-1 of the incident occurring, others have suggested the odds are as extreme as nearly 2,000,000-1.

Either way, it’s pretty spooky.

Manchester United will hope to take advantage of instability at Real Madrid after being drawn against the Spanish giants in the last 16.

With Arsenal facing last season’s beaten finalists Bayern Munich and Neil Lennon’s Celtic heroes coming up against Juventus it is possible there will be no British clubs in the quarter-finals for the first time since 1996.

United’s classic tie with Real (the first leg is scheduled for the Bernabeu on February 13) will see the return of Cristiano Ronaldo for the first time since he quit Old Trafford for £80 million in 2009.

What are the odds? 5,000-1 say statisticians